Mermaid Magic According to the Internet
by Michelle the Editor
Summary: Kim's suspicions about the reality of mermaids return, and in her search to understand them, she turns to the Internet, in particular various mermaid spells. The results? Constant bathing, live fish in the bathtub, drinking seawater, universe-bending paradoxes, maybe a tail or two—the usual dish of crazy served up on the Web.
1. Chapter 1: Insouciant Inclemency

Disclaimer: I do not own H2O, nor do I own the spell. This one pops up frequently, which is why it comes first, but the example provided was copied from Yahoo Answers.

Author's Note: Every spell used in this fic is taken from one website or another, verbatim, down to spelling/grammar/punctuation errors, with one validated exception. It just gives them that extra little touch of ridiculous. If there are any more that you've stumbled upon, please share them.

oYo

Kim was busy at one of her favorite pastimes—going through Cleo's stuff while her older sister was out. Cleo spent nearly all her time with Emma, Rikki and Lewis, and since she and Lewis had become a couple, they barely spent any time at home where Dad could get in the way.

Wriggling out from under the bed, Kim opened up a little wooden box, and looked at the locket inside it. It was silvery, with a blue stone inset in the center. Kim's eyebrows shot up: Cleo always wore this locket. Well, except for that one time with Charlotte…that had been a weird week. Kind of scary, even.

Funny, Rikki and Emma had lockets exactly like this. For some reason, Kim remembered that time she'd thought the three of them, Lewis, Miriam and Tiffany were mermaids. There was something mermaidy about the locket. Shaking her head, she put it back in the box, and slipped it back under the bed. It was pretty, but Kim was pretty sure Cleo would outright kill her if she took it.

Then, almost without Kim thinking about it, two of the pieces clicked. Charlotte taking the locket, then the rumor about her getting superpowers—Ash had almost seen Charlotte holding the three girls up in the air with wind or something. Then there were those nights when one or all of them started acting weird—the full moon. It was _always_ the full moon. They seemed like they were scared of it just like they were of touching water.

Kim sat up straight. Something truly fishy—pun intended; she grinned—was going on here. But this wasn't going to be like last time. She wasn't going to try exposing them in public before she knew how this worked. Still, Kim didn't feel any better about the idea of these secret mermaids doing secret mermaid things right under everyone's noses. People needed to know.

Then Kim got it. Of course: all she had to do was turn herself into a mermaid, too! Then they'd have to let her in on their secret—or she could protect herself from them with whatever powers she got. And she could just expose all of them, show that she was a good mermaid, if she wanted. It was foolproof.

Scrambling up, Kim began going through Cleo's stuff more scientifically. Now she just needed to find out how to become a mermaid. It probably wasn't written down, but maybe she'd be able to find a clue. Aha, Cleo's computer. Sitting down, Kim opened the history, and began browsing for anything connected to mermaids in the history and bookmarks.

Then she heard the front door slam, and Rikki's voice downstairs. Oh no, the club was back—was it a full moon tonight? Kim thought so. Quickly, she tried to speed-memorize the sites on the history, sprang up, and closed the browser. But just as she reached the door, it opened, and Cleo walked in.

"But how long will you be gone?" She was asking, looking back over her shoulder. Then she turned and saw Kim. Stopping, she folded her arms and eyed Kim suspiciously. "What are you doing in my room _this_ time?"

"Looking for a book," Kim replied, as innocently as she could. "Didn't find it. I didn't move anything!" She darted out past Rikki and Emma and down the hall before Cleo could react. Her sister didn't follow her: Cleo was too used to Kim's semiregular room invasions to care. The other maybe-mermaids went in, and Kim went to the downstairs computer.

But as she sat down, her mind blanked. What had Cleo been looking at? 'Mermaids' was all Kim could remember. Legends? Magic? Mermaid magic sounded like a good place to start. Kim shrugged and Googled it.

Twenty minutes later, Kim was resting her cheek on her fist, staring at another page full of links to dubiously mystical sites that spelled "fairy" as "faery" (they couldn't find a weird spelling for 'mermaid'? Mermayde?), digital dolls, and movies and TV shows about mermaids. She was running out of ideas. With one finger, she picked out "how 2 bcome mermaid," and hit the search button.

The first option was someone asking the same question. The chosen answer was a magic spell. Kim's brow furrowed; it looked familiar. It had probably popped up earlier. Huh. Maybe there was something in it, if different people talked about it. She re-read the answer more carefully.

_Insouciant inclemency, Redoubtabe mediocracy,Refutable humanity, Make me what I wish to be... A MERMAID. Witchs one,Witchs all,Give this power to me. it takes one months to take a tail,two months to get a power(kinda like the show H2o) . WARNING:one drop of water turns u to a mermaid. u have to something on upper body thats speial to u. U might have some side effects-good singing, get affected by the full moon,etc. u better belive in the spell or it won't work. P.S,I'm a mermaid._

"The show H2O?" That name seemed kind of familiar, too. Kim searched it, but the minute she entered the terms, the browser closed. Re-opening it, Kim was greeted about an error message that promised a troop of trained monkeys to repair the mistake. She rolled her eyes and found the spell again. Good singing and the full moon? Cleo had gotten that weird one-night diva voice during one full moon party. It was worth a shot, anyway.

oUo

Cleo, Emma and Rikki were having another full moon slumber party, and were down in the living room. Kim could hear them watching a movie. Normally she would have gone down to spy on them, but tonight she had that mermaid spell to try. She'd printed it out, and had it on her bed to double-check.

The bit about "something special on your upper body" Kim had guessed meant something like Cleo's locket, but then she wondered if her tail would come with a top. Just to be safe, she was wearing a bracelet she liked and a swim top. She cleared her throat, listened for a moment—Kim didn't want to know what Dad would say if he walked in on her—and began.

"Insouciant inclemency, redoubtable—no, redoubtabe mediocracy, refutable humanity, make me what I want to be…a _mermaid_. Witches one, witches all, give this power to me." Kim shut her eyes, and remembered all the little, weird things she'd seen and noticed over the past few years. This spell _was_ going to work, she believed it would. She'd get a tail just like the others.

That was probably enough believing. Kim changed from her swim top to her pajamas, and crumpling up the spell, threw it in the trash. She had a month to wait for her tail, and she didn't want Cleo or the others to figure out what she'd done while she was waiting. They might be able to stop her or something. Kim grinned, and headed downstairs. Time to see what movie they were watching!

oYo

Trivia: This spell's first few lines translate out to "Carefree harshness, intimidating rule by 'meh' people, proving the fact that I'm human to be false, make me what I want to be, etc…" Yes, really.


	2. Chapter 2: God of the Moon

Disclaimer: I don't own H2O, and the spell is from the "Mermaid Inforematal Center," spelled exactly that way. I got to it just in time: mere hours after I collected these spells, the site's bandwidth ran out.

oYo

Kim walked in just as Cleo was coming down the stairs. Kim had been busy thinking about Dylan from school, and didn't register her sister's quick shout that she was going to Emma's. She bumped Kim in passing, and was out the door and gone in a second. Turning, Kim frowned after her. Huh. Must be time for another full moon party.

Then Kim froze, and her eyes widened. Full moon tonight. It had been a month since she'd done that mermaid spell. It was time for her tail! Dropping her backpack by the stairs, Kim bolted up to the bathroom, shut and locked the door. She heard Dad shout her name.

"I'm fine, Dad! Just cleaning up a little from school!" Kim yelled through the door. She looked around. Bathtub, shower, sink, bathtub, shower, sink—sink. She'd be able to turn it on and off quickly. Kim went over, and looked at her reflection. The setting sun coming through the window made her hair look orange. She giggled a little in excitement, and switched on the water.

Belatedly, Kim remembered that she only needed one drop, and turned off the faucet. Her hands were both wet, and she stepped back, staring down at her legs in anticipation. They stayed legs. A little water dripped down to her elbows, dampening her sleeves. The light outside got more and more orange. Dad turned on the TV downstairs. Still no tail.

"Maybe…it was supposed to be a full month, not a lunar month?" Kim guessed. But she didn't believe it. There was nothing special about thirty-day months: one of her teachers kept whining about the calendar for it. Mermaidness was supposed to be connected to the moon, and it had been one month for the moon. This spell was a dud.

Angrily, Kim yanked a towel down to dry off her hands, and tossing it on the floor, left the bathroom. Stomping down the stairs, Kim wondered how her sister and those girls had turned into mermaids. Then, slowing to a halt, she realized that there were probably more spells on the internet. Yeah, that was it! Kim would try every spell she could find; one of them was bound to be the right one. Grinning, Kim headed for the computer.

oYo

_Run a hot bath and pour salt in it on a full moon. think about a tail instead of two feet._

_say this: God of the moon, goddess of the ocean bless me with a tail but when i'm dry i have my human form._

_Don't forget to look at the full moon for 10 secs and think of a power u want_

oYo

"Kim? What are you doing?" Kim sat up straight and looked around at her Dad. He had turned away from the TV and was looking at the can of salt in her hands. Glancing down, and then back at him, she tried to think of an excuse.

"I'm…going to have a salt bath. It's supposed to be good for you or something," Kim said. Dad frowned at her, and Kim gave him her best fake grin. She wished Cleo and her friends were around—Dad would be too busy making sure they didn't have too much fun to care what Kim did.

"Okay, fine," Dad said at last, probably filing this under "girl things I wouldn't understand." Kim darted away to the bathroom. Turning on the water, she opened the curtains, letting the full moon shine inside. Setting down the salt, Kim gazed up at it for a moment. The moon always looked so huge right near the water. It was almost a little creepy—especially since Kim had an idea of what it could do.

Then she realized that the tub was getting full, and ran to turn off the tap. Well, the bath was definitely hot; steaming, actually. Kim had forgotten to get the temperature right before getting distracted. She touched it, and recoiled with a little hiss. Too hot for now. Picking up the salt, she began pouring it in. It dissolved into a cloud.

Kim waited for the water to reach a reasonable temperature. The moon rose higher outside, casting long shadows across the tiled floor. Dad's show mumbled in the background, and there were crickets chirruping outside. Apparently nobody had told them that summer was almost over. Kim made a face: that wasn't a fun thought. Maybe when she had powers, Kim could use them to get out of her homework assignments.

The water was finally all right. Kim got in and sat down, facing the moon. She concentrated on a tail, trying to remember what Cleo's had looked like. Orange, very long, scaly, thick, almost rubbery maybe.

"God of the moon, goddess of the ocean, bless me with a tail, but when I'm dry, I have my human form," Kim said. This one was easy to remember. She wondered what god and goddess she was supposed to be talking to. She stared at the moon, counting down under her breath and thinking about the power of turning water into ice. Was there a word for that?

Ten seconds were up. Kim ducked under the water, just so her Dad wouldn't notice that her hair was dry after her "bath," and began letting the water out. She wondered if her lie about salt water being good for skin was true—hopefully. If this spell didn't work out, there were more that needed salt-water baths, from what she'd seen. Kim got out and toweled off.

This was another spell without any time or rules, so Kim just guessed it was a ten-second-wetting thing like the others had talked about. That seemed pretty close to what would happen to Cleo and the others. She dried herself off as thoroughly as she could, and then stuck her hand under the tap.

Kim wasn't too disappointed when this spell didn't work. It seemed a little dodgy anyway. Sighing, she grabbed the salt canister—which was a lot lighter than it had been before—and went to put it away. Better luck next time.

oYo

Trivia: The original version of this fic was written around Charlotte trying to turn back into a mermaid, but then I finished watching her episodes and realized that she'd already made her peace with not having a tail.


	3. Chapter 3: Put Moisturising Lotion On

Disclaimer: H2O is from Jonathan M. Shiff, this spell from the Mermaid Inforematal Center.

oYo

_ 1. Fill your bathtub with water, add seashells! Put on a locket with a picture of a fish in it!  
2. Say " I wish to be a mermaid, I wish with all my heart, and now I'd really like my mermaid powers to start! I will choose my power and the color of my tail, and I'm very sure that my descision will not fail! My power will be (freezing, boiling, moving) and my color will be (favorite color)!  
3. Get into the bathtub for 30 minutes, hold your legs together the whole time!  
4. Get out of the tub and dry off, put moisturising lotion on, then don't touch water for more then 10 seconds for the rest of the day!  
5. Also, don't take the locket off! It will hold your powers until they are done soaking in, they should be soaked in to you by 7:00 that day, but still don't touch water, you will still get a tail, but could lose your power!  
The full moon can't effect you in real life, and you get to choose when you transform!_

oYo

Kim held up the large, heart-shaped locket, and squinted at it in the midmorning sunlight. It had been silver, but it was so old that it had turned slightly yellowy. There were two empty hinges on the front, and inside it was an old, water-stained picture of a clownfish. All in all, it was the most hideous piece of jewelry Kim had ever seen. But it was also cheap—very cheap.

Heading to the end of the outdoor flea market, Kim handed the locket and some money to the woman manning the cash register. She looked even older than the locket. Laughing and mumbling something Kim couldn't understand, she rang it up, put it in a little plastic bag, and gave it back to Kim.

As Kim headed back towards home, she noticed Cleo, Emma and Rikki going the other way. Nervously, she sped up, and then realized that might look suspicious. She slowed down to what she hoped was a casual saunter, and snuck glances at the three older girls. Rikki noticed first, and frowning, muttered something to Cleo. Oh no, they were on to her.

Kim waited until the trio looked away, and then ducked behind an empty barrel. She listened for their footsteps, but didn't hear anything. Sucking in a deep breath, Kim sneaked another look. Cleo was watching her—Kim quickly ducked back into place.

"Yeah, that's kind of weird," she heard her sister say.

"No, you have a tail, _that's_ kind of weird," she whispered. Turning, she began creeping away behind a low tree, and then another few barrels. The alley was only a few meters away. A glance back showed that Cleo and company weren't following her, just standing and talking quietly.

Then Kim was in the alley. Straightening, she burst into a run, still breathless from her narrow escape. Her hand was starting to hurt from squeezing the bag so tight, and she loosened her grip. She decided to try the spell right when she got home, before the mermaids could get suspicious. If it worked, she wouldn't have to worry about the full moon or anything.

oYo

Kim locked the bathroom door. Dad was still at work, so she had the house to herself, unless Cleo came home early. Kim had gathered all the shells from the house—hopefully she'd put them all back so nobody noticed—and now the tub's bottom was half-covered. Holding the printed-out spell, Kim cleared her throat.

"I wish to be a mermaid, I wish with all my heart, and now I'd really like my mermaid powers to start! I will choose my power and the color of my tail, and I'm very sure that my decision will not fail! My power will be…freezing, and my color will be pink!" Kim looked down at her feet, and then the tub.

Grasping the edge, she jumped into the tub with feet together, slipped, and sat down with a thump and a crunch. Oh no…Kim yelled silently in pain, and quickly brushed all the bits of shell away. They didn't look very big or special. The pain got worse, and Kim leaned back with a whimper. She thought she might have bruised her tailbone or something; it felt like it.

It took ten minutes for the pain to fade—just a few minutes before the last of the bubbles disappeared. Kim pushed all of the shells to the foot of the tub, and wished she'd remembered to get her iPod before starting this. With a shrug, she grabbed the soap and began scrubbing.

Finally, the thirty minutes ran out. Her hands and feet were already very pruny, and the water was cold. Kim climbed out and finished up. She paused for a moment, holding the moisturizer: if it was important enough that the spell had to mention it, where was she supposed to put it? All over? Just on her legs? With a shrug, Kim decided it didn't matter.

oYo

"Cleo, dishes," Dad called. Cleo stopped halfway up the stairs, and turned around. Kim deliberately ignored her, dumping her own plate beside the sink with a clatter. This time Cleo was going to have to pay her before, not after. Then Kim realized suddenly that she wasn't supposed to touch water today.

"Kim," Cleo said from right beside her, making Kim jump.

"Cleo! Good, the dishes need you," Kim said, gesturing to them. Cleo frowned a little.

"Um, did you forget our arrangement?" She folded her arms. Kim decided to play it cool, and grinned.

"I don't feel like doing your work tonight." She headed past Cleo, but her sister turned around.

"Kim, come on," Cleo began, but Kim was already hurrying up the stairs to her room. "Is something wrong? You've been acting weird all day." Kim paused on the stairs, and bit her lip. This was going to be harder than she'd thought.

"Weird? Who's acting weird?" Kim gave what she hoped was a convincingly casual grin to Cleo. "I just think it's your job and you should do it. Do you want me to tell Dad?"

"No, no," Cleo said hastily. She was playing with her locket now. "Couldn't we just…compromise or something?" Even though Kim was afraid of messing up the spell, she recognized that she had the high ground—at least for now. Might as well make the mermaid squirm a little. Kim came down a step.

"Like how?" Cleo gnawed on her lower lip.

"We-ell, maybe a raise?" She suggested. Kim folded her arms.

"How big of a raise?" She asked, eyeing Cleo. Dad's voice rang out again.

"What are you girls arguing about?"

"Nothing!" Kim and Cleo called in accidental unison. They waited a moment, to make sure Dad wasn't going to do anything. He didn't, and they faced each other again.

"Double."

"No way!" Cleo said with an incredulous laugh.

"Fine!" Kim turned and ran up the stairs. This was starting to get old—plus Cleo would probably get annoyed if she dragged this out too long and wasn't actually going to do the dishes. Slamming her door, Kim happened to glance at the clock on her dresser. 7:13. Time to try out the spell!

Kim stopped in the middle of her room, closed her eyes, and focused. She imagined her legs turning into a tail, like Cleo's but pink. Nothing happened. Then she tried to picture one just like Cleo's, as well as she could remember it. Not a single scale materialized. Kim opened her eyes. Scowling, she grabbed the spell, tore it up, and threw it in the trash. She threw herself on the bed, folded her arms, and glared into her pillow. It wasn't fair.

oYo

Trivia: All chapter titles are taken from the weirdest or most unique part of the spell.

sooo not saying and Zikki 3: Don't worry, I'm partway through chapter eight already, I'm just pacing my updates to once a week. Thank you!


	4. Chapter 4: Beauty Be Upon Me

Disclaimer: I don't own H2O or this spell, which also comes from the Mermaid Inforematal Center

oYo

_you go into the shower wearing your favorite necklace then you take your shower but towards the end of your shower you say this spell SLOWLY with your eyes shut_

_Magic spirits of the deep _

_i would like a tail not two feet_

_beauty be upon me_

_fish all kinds let me see_

_when i'm fnished in the sea_

_when i'm dry my feet return to me_

_Once you have said that get out of the shower and dry your self and you should be a mermaid next time you have touched water._

oYo

Kim heard the door open, and tried to jump up, only to hit her head on the underside of the bed. As she started wriggling free, Cleo grabbed her by the ankles and pulled her out. Some of Kim's hair caught in the bed, and she yelped a little as it was pulled out. She blinked a little in the now-bright sunlight pouring in through the windows.

"What are you doing in my room this time?" Cleo folded her arms and glared down at Kim.

"Looking for something to wear to Jamie's birthday party."

"Under the bed?"

"It's where you keep your jewelry box, right?" Kim said, grinning brightly.

"Out. Now," Cleo ordered, pointing to the doorway. Kim groaned, but remembering that her sister had superpowers, went. In passing, she spotted the locket around Cleo's neck. She'd been hoping to swipe it—but then Cleo would probably notice that it was gone pretty quickly.

Slamming her own door, Kim sat down on her bed with a thump, and scowled at her sneakers. Now what? She didn't _have_ a favorite necklace. All of hers were so boring! Still, might as well check. Kim retrieved her jewelry box from the top shelf of her closet, and opened it up.

Lying right on top was that hideous fish locket. Pulling it out as delicately as if it was covered in slime, Kim eyed it as it dangled, spinning slowly. Maybe she could clean it up a little and sell it to some antique shop. How would it look without the picture? With her fingernails, Kim forced the snippet of paper out, and looked at the locket again. Better, though still tarnished and ugly. Was soaking it in vinegar supposed to help it get shiny again? She'd ask Dad.

As Kim tossed the locket on the bed beside her, she happened to glance at the fallen clownfish picture. It was folded up, and something was written on the back in tiny letters. That was interesting. Kim picked it up and tried to read it, but the ink was smeary and the handwriting very tiny. Setting it on the dresser, Kim ran for a magnifying glass.

After a few minutes of squinting at the scrap of paper, Kim made out the words. "To JD, from NL." Kim looked at the locket again. Who would get that horror as a present for someone? A really little kid, maybe?

Back to the important stuff. Kim sighed, and dug through her jewelry box again. Boring, boring, ugly, broken, wait a minute, was that the friendship bracelet Maia had made for her when they were seven? Kim picked it up. It consisted of about five glassy beads on a piece of once-stretchy purple string, tied into a knot. Yeah, it was. Wow, it looked even uglier than the locket.

Kim glanced at the garbage can, but something made her put the bracelet back. She'd liked Maia, even though she had a lisp that made her spit every time she said the letter "s," and had pulled the fire alarm and blamed Kim for it during a test. Oh well, it wasn't like the thing was going to infect the rest of her stuff by staying where it was. Not that it would matter. Kim put the bracelet back.

oYo

Kim shut her eyes tight, turning her face away from the showerhead. The necklace she'd finally settled on, a green pendant on a black cord (not stolen from Cleo, for once; Kim had lost it months ago and only just found it behind the bed), was still a little cold against her collarbone. Drumming her fingers on the wall, Kim tried to remember exactly how the spell went. Cleo had almost caught her muttering it as she got ready for her shower.

"Magic spirits of the deep, I would like a tail, not two feet. Beauty be upon me, fish—all kinds—let me see. When I'm finished in the sea, when I'm dry, my feet return to me," she recited, softly so the shower would hide her voice. There was a knock on the door.

"Kim? You've been in there twenty-five minutes, come on," Cleo called through the door.

"I'm coming!" Kim yelled, turning off the water. It zapped her with cold at the very last second, like always, and she shivered as she toweled off. Glancing down at the damp necklace, Kim wondered what it was for in the spell. It hadn't said anything about not taking it off or powers soaking into it—but she'd leave it on anyway, just in case.

Cleo knocked again as Kim tied up her bathrobe, and the younger girl opened the door. Still scrubbing at her damp hair with a small towel, she headed out past Cleo and down the hall.

"You're wearing a necklace," Cleo said. Kim paused and raised her eyebrows. She tried to just lift one, but they both went up, so she went with that.

"Is that a crime now?"

"No, never mind," Cleo said slowly, giving Kim a weird look. Shaking her head, Kim went into her own room. She scrubbed at the inside of one ear with the corner of her towel; she wanted to be fully dry before she tried turning into a mermaid. Snatching up her hairdryer, Kim got to work.

Kim thought as she blew her hair dry. If this spell worked, she'd be a mermaid, but she didn't really get a pick of powers. Hopefully they'd be something strong enough to handle the mermaid coven or whatever they were called. Was there a name for a flock of mermaids? A school, maybe? Anyway, she'd have to keep her tail a secret until she'd mastered them. If she turned the second she touched water, she'd have to be careful. No more pool parties, no washing the dishes with her bare hands, no spilled drinks. Grinning, Kim decided she'd show Elliot first. He'd helped her before when she'd tried to expose the mermaids, and she wanted to see the look on his face when she finally proved once and for all that she was right.

Okay, dry as the outback. Kim turned off the hairdryer, and glanced around her room. Yes, her water bottle was sitting behind her backpack, right where she'd left it. Tossing her bag to the floor—and ignoring the thump and crackle of books crushing loose paper—Kim squirted a few drops of water into her hand. She held her breath.

Nothing. Her bathrobe stayed a fluffy pink bathrobe, and her legs themselves. With a sigh, Kim wiped her hand off on the towel. Another dud. She wondered whether this was such a good idea in the first place. No, no, don't start doubting now, Kim told herself. You know the mermaids are real, and they must have turned somehow. You'll find it, you just have to keep trying. How many times had Einstein tried to invent the lightbulb? Two hundred? Kim had nothing to worry about.

oYo

Trivia: Kim's knowledge of history is rather worse than her sister's, hence the lightbulb, though in her defense "Einstein" and "Edison" are a bit similar, and she's upset.


	5. Chapter 5: DONT SHAVE LEGS

Disclaimer: The characters and setting are from H2O, the spell from mermaids and other stuff.

oYo

_What you need to do:  
Get a symbol special necklace you NEVER TAKE OFF  
Rise a Candle  
Sprinkle the bath with salt ps have to be wearing symbol  
If you dont get your tail and power straight away it will take a couple of days  
THE SPELL: :As i lay here in this water, I conceal myself to you. Air was needed, Now no more, My legs squeeze and join. A mermaid forever im a human when dry, a mermaid when wet and i will have the tail the colour of () and also have the power of ()  
SO MOTE IT BE!_

_Side Effects: Legs changing to the colour you picked Dizzyness Headaches Stomachaches peeling skin Legs itching , tingly , saw feeling sick all the time Gills ( Most likely around neck or sides ) Legs wanting to stay Together / Crossed Constant Thirst Craving Salt Mood swings Wanting to touch / be in water Mermaid Dreams / Visions Random Outbursts Symbol Changes color Rash Rely on water to make you happy Feel weak when touch water Hair decreases growth ( ex. takes a long time to grow hair back , shaved / cut / waxed )_

_WARNING: DONT CUT HAIR OR HAIR GROWTH WILL DECREASE.  
DONT SHAVE LEGS OR YOU WILL LOSE YOUR POWERS AND TAIL. PS: NEVER TAKE OFF SYMBOL OTHERWISE YOU WILL LOSE POWERS AND TAIL FOLLOW THESE RULES OR YOU WILL NEVER BECOME A MERMAID._

oYo

Kim was sitting on what had been Mom and Dad's bed. It was the most comfy one in the house, and when Kim was younger, she used to sneak in and bounce on it when nobody was there. She was too old for that now (well, she did a few little hops out of habit), and now she was just keeping away from any prying eyes. Lewis was helping Cleo with her homework in the living room.

The springs squeaked as Kim jiggled a little in place, thinking. She'd found another spell, and this time it was very detailed. Maybe a little too detailed, Kim thought with a wince, remembering all of the side effects it had listed. She hadn't really noticed Cleo or the others getting gills or any of those other nasty things—or if they had, they'd hidden them very well.

Kim flopped back on the bed, and rolled over onto her stomach. As she did, she happened to glance towards the dresser by one wall, and paused. It was very dusty, but Kim thought she could see something shiny under the dresser. She got up and went over. Whatever it was, it lay pretty far back, near the wall.

Lying down on her side, Kim reached under the dresser and felt around. It was full of dust bunnies and cobwebs, and Kim made grotesque faces at the floor as she worked. Then her fingers brushed a metallic chain, and she seized it. Sliding out, Kim held up the chain, and rubbed the dust off.

Her salvage was a little silver necklace, with three violet gems set in more silver dangling from the middle. Kim recognized it; Mom had gotten it for a birthday or anniversary or something years ago, and wore it whenever she went somewhere fancy. She must have lost it.

Getting up, Kim headed to the mirror. She'd never been very good with little jewelry latches. Even twisting the necklace around so she could get it in front was hard, and it took her five minutes to finally clip it shut. Then she flipped it around, straightened it, and looked at herself. Looking at it made her think about Mom, which made her a tiny bit sadder than she liked to admit. It was funny, Mom leaving it here by accident. Almost like a secret last present.

That made it special. Kim grinned at her reflection, and flicked her hair over her shoulder. It was good enough; she had her symbol-special-necklace-whatever. Now she just had to figure out what "rise a candle" was supposed to mean!

oYo

Kim sat in school, working on a pop quiz. It was a strange quiz; there were questions about math and history and even a few about her classmates. Still, Kim thought she was doing all right. Some of the other students were nervous. Elliot, who was seated right in front of her now, didn't seem to be doing very well. He kept trying to get out a cell phone and text someone.

Then she noticed that it wasn't day anymore. The moon was rising, and it was full. Nobody else was paying attention to it, just acting like they always did in a test. Kim almost got mad, although she wasn't entirely sure why. White moonlight poured in the windows and pooled on the floor, spilling over Kim's desk as it went.

Then a peculiar itching started in Kim's legs. She scratched one calf with her other toes, but it didn't go away. Glancing down, she noticed a weird blue rash poking up from her sock. Kim frowned and pulled her foot up, peeling her sock down to see more of the rash covering her foot. What's more, it was growing, spreading up Kim's leg right before her eyes.

Kim got up, and the teacher glanced up at her. It was Mr. Wilson, her PE teacher, for some reason. He was still in one of the Hawaiian shirts he always wore for gym class, and had his feet up on the desk.

"What are you doing, Sertori?" He asked, leaning forward.

"I-I need to go to the bathroom." The itching was getting stronger, and she could feel the scales creeping up to her knees.

"You've only got three more questions, finish the test first!" Mr. Wilson barked, and Kim sat down quickly. She stared at the final three questions. The letters squiggled and rearranged themselves before her eyes, and she scrubbed at the page with a fist, trying to make them stop. She grew so panicked that she barely even noticed that her legs wouldn't come apart.

The other kids started giggling around Kim. She punched the test booklet, and Mr. Wilson blew his whistle. Looking over his shoulder, Elliot eyed Kim, and smiled amiably at her.

"Nice tail," he said, and turned back around. "Mine's better, though." Then Kim realized that her legs had turned into a bright blue mermaid tail. It wrapped around the legs of her chair like a snake, and the fluke was almost green. Her clothes had turned into a scaly blue bra-thing, and she let out a yelp.

"Sertori, stop it this instant and finish the test," Mr. Wilson said. Kim threw up her hands helplessly, and the other students kept laughing. With the kind of dark look that usually meant fifteen push-ups and a lap around the track, Mr. Wilson rose and stomped towards Kim.

Then Kim woke up with a jolt. She looked around wildly; she was in her own bed. The clock read 3:15 am, and it was pitch black outside. Catching her breath, Kim flipped back the blanket and looked down at her legs. They were completely normal, and she breathed a sigh of relief. Then another of disappointment.

Rolling over onto her side, Kim snuggled into the blankets. She'd had a mermaid dream; that was one of the symptoms, right? Maybe this spell was going to work. Hopefully not in the middle of class like that, though. Kim shut her eyes and went back to sleep.

oYo

Trivia: This story was inspired by me seeing various mermaid spells around the site, getting irritated by them not even trying to write an actual story, and then demonstrating it to them on the reviews page.


	6. Chapter 6: Eat Something Salty!

From mermaids and other stuff

oYo

_A human when dry, a mermaid when wet, and have a power of () and have a tail the color of () a human when dry, a mermaid when wet, gills are not needed, just a big breath, that lasts 30 minutes, a human when dry, a mermaid when wet, ill get my powers, and tail in 1 week,ill get my tail, one minute after being wet, when wet a mermaide when dry, a human, the rain does not matter, it cannot change me, but a drop of any other water will._

_Remember not to shave or wax your legs! You will also need a peice or Jewelry, one that means a lot to you! And remeber,do not take your Jewelry off or the spell wont work! Just BELIVE! and when you are done with the spell dry off immidiatley and eat something salty!_

_Side Effects: Legs changing to the colour you picked Dizzyness Headaches Stomachaches peeling skin Legs itching , tingly , saw feeling sick all the time Gills ( Most likely around neck or sides ) Legs wanting to stay Together / Crossed Constant Thirst Craving Salt Mood swings Wanting to touch / be in water Mermaid Dreams / Visions Random Outbursts Symbol Changes color Rash Rely on water to make you happy Feel weak when touch water Hair decreases growth ( ex. takes a long time to grow hair back , shaved / cut / waxed )_

oYo

Kim grinned at the computer screen, and hit the print button with a click. Specific, detailed, matched up with a lot of things she knew about her sister and the other mermaids: this spell looked great. She was in the JuiceNet Café, "doing homework."

"I don't even need to shave my legs yet, so no big deal," she said. "And I bet you just tacked on the nasty symptoms to scare people off—you should have been more careful, mermaid girl; you contradicted yourself about the gills. That's what happens when you copy-and-paste from other spells without paying attention."

"What happens?" Kim jumped, and realized that Ash was standing next to her. Emma was behind the counter, but she was giving Kim an odd look. Kim guessed that Cleo had been talking to her.

"Nothing," Kim said. She opened a new tab and deleted her history with shaky fingers. "Don't be so nosy." Ash laughed it off and wandered away, but Kim caught him giving her sneaky little glances as he rejoined Emma. Oh no, he was in on it too. Kim got up and went over to the printer, which had finished by now. Grabbing the spell, she folded it up and headed out the bead curtain door.

As Kim shoved the paper into her bag, she heard a clinking noise, and remembered the ugly fish locket. It had needed, of all things, a salt-baking soda-hot water bath, and now it actually looked like silver. Kim headed for the nearest antique shop, which was right next to the retirement village. Perfect spot, Kim thought; old things for old people.

The little bell over the door jangled as Kim walked inside. The place was very white, with antiques in little groups scattered around the room. There was one older woman behind the counter, and Kim headed over to her.

"How much can I get for this?" She asked, setting the locket down on the counter. Pulling the locket across the fake wood countertop with one bony hand, the old woman picked it up and looked it over. Kim bounced on the balls of her feet a little, looking around. This place even _smelled_ old; she made a little face.

"I haven't seen that in a long time," a new woman's voice broke in. Kim jumped and spun around. The new older woman looked familiar: it took Kim a minute to recognize Miss Chatham. Coming up to the counter, Miss Chatham looked at the locket. She smiled a little, nostalgically.

"Why? Is it special?" Kim asked. She eyed the shopkeeper, who rightly understood 'special' to mean 'worth a lot of money,' and pursed her lips.

"Not by itself, no," Miss Chatham said, smiling, and Kim's face fell. "Just a memory. And there was something inside it. A picture."

"I'll give you five dollars for it," the shopkeeper said, in a voice gravelly from smoking. Kim gave her a hard look.

"Ten," she said, folding her arms.

"Six-fifty."

"Nine-fifty."

"Seven."

"Seven-seventy-five."

"Seven-fifty, and that's final," the woman snapped. Kim smiled brightly despite her scowl.

"Thank you!" She accepted the money and turned back to Miss Chatham. "A picture? Was it by any chance a clownfish with JD and NL on the back?"

Miss Chatham looked a little surprised. "It was."

Kim gave Miss Chatham an expectant look. After waiting a moment to see that no, Miss Chatham was not going to buy the locket on the spot, the shopkeeper snorted and headed into the back of the shop. Miss Chatham chuckled and started out, and Kim followed. She checked around quickly, making sure nobody was around who would tease her about hanging out with a grandma. There wasn't, so she relaxed.

"Julia—that's JD—was my friend many years ago. She…was disappointed by a boy she had fallen in love with. NL was Nancy Lyons, her former boyfriend's younger sister. She didn't know exactly what had happened, she was only five at the time, but she could tell that her brother Karl had done something to upset Julia." Miss Chatham sat down on a bench, and after a moment's hesitation, Kim sat down beside her. "One day, when Julia was out on the beach, Nancy came over to see her."

A jogger went by, and Kim pretended she was just sitting on the bench coincidentally, nothing to do with Miss Chatham. The sweaty man bounded on by, lost in his running and the music blasting through his headphones. Miss Chatham chuckled a little, seemingly lost in thought.

"Nancy gave her that locket, which she'd bought with her own money, telling Julia that she was sorry that Karl had made her sad and wanted to cheer her up and be her friend. It did help Julia, a little, and she wrote their initials on the back of the picture. They remained friends, strange ones, and Nancy helped her begin to recover from what Karl had done."

Kim didn't say anything for a long minute. A sea breeze blew, making Miss Chatham's earrings tinkle a little. That jogger was still going, turning a corner and heading down the sidewalk. Kim put her money in her pocket.

"That's weird," Kim said at last, getting up. Miss Chatham seemed mildly amused by her reaction, and Kim hurried away, glad she'd gotten rid of that thing. She'd never have been able to look at it the same way again after this. "Why was she so up-"

Kim turned back as she spoke, and stopped when she saw that Miss Chatham was gone. She glanced around. "-Set. Riiight, she's a ninja or Batman or something." Definitely uncomfortable, Kim headed home.

oYo


	7. Chapter 7: 1 Litre of Sea Water

Disclaimer: Don't own H2O, and if I did, Bella would have had a rather different character. This spell is from the Mermaid Inforematal Center.

I originally intended the Kim parts as a framing device for messing with these spells, but having people like them particularly is great. Of course, if they do get more serious, I may slow the updates to once a week, as I'm catching up to myself now. We'll see.

oYo

_And remember, you'll need a lot of IMAGINATION, so it can work._

_ok what you do is you go down to the beach which is closest to you when the full moon is out, take your clothes off, sit on the shore and put your head under water and call out to the mermaids and tell them that your coming, then you drink 1 litre of sea water and then you dive in and there you go!_

_it worked for me…_

oYo

Kim sat on the beach, not sure whether she was trying to nerve up to go through with this spell, or finally convince herself to give it up. It was the most insane one she'd found yet, but maybe that was because it was the real thing. Beside her lay a towel, the printed-out spell under a rock, and an empty litre bottle. Kim looked down at the dark water. It looked so cold…

Finally, Kim sighed, and began pulling off her sweater. The autumn air began working through her clothes right from the start, as did the nippy wind. The full moon made the night bright, and Kim felt very exposed even though she knew she was alone. She didn't want to think about what would happen if someone heard about this—even if it worked. Balling up her socks, she stuck them into her shoes.

Finally fully undressed and very cold, Kim hugged the empty plastic bottle to her chest and ran down to the water's edge. Sucking in a deep breath, she dropped to her knees and ducked her head into the water—and squealed at the cold. Coming back up for air, Kim tried again, yelling in a stream of bubbles.

"Cleo! Guys! I'm coming, you can't hide anymore!" Sitting back with a gasp, Kim shook and wiped the seawater out of her face. Then she took the bottle, filled it up, and took a long gulp. It tasted every bit as awful as she'd thought it would. Grossed out, Kim nearly spit it out. But she'd already started; she couldn't just stop now. Trying to think about being a mermaid, Kim drank the seawater as quickly as she could. Cold waves splashed her legs and stomach, and her fingers and toes grew numb.

Kim finally finished, throwing the bottle away. She felt queasy and bizarrely thirsty, but she'd done it. Getting up, she raised her arms and dove into the water. As she went under, Kim decided that the previous dunk hadn't been that cold. This, this was cold. For a second she couldn't even breathe.

Coming up, Kim treaded water and waited—_prayed_—for a tail to show up to make this worth it. She couldn't feel her toes anymore, but when she checked, they were still toes, albeit pruny ones. With a moan, Kim started back towards the shore. That was when she noticed a pair of still headlights up near the edge of the dunes. Kim paused.

A car door swung open, shutting with a thump, and a slow figure climbed down the beach. Eyes widening, Kim backed up quickly, hoping whoever-it-was couldn't see her. The moonlight showed an old man in a fisherman's hat and a patterned shirt. He stepped on her abandoned clothes and looked down, then cupped his hands around his mouth to yell.

"Hello? Is someone there?" Kim ducked under the water and hoped he would go away. She stayed down as long as she could, faintly hearing him yell again. Finally, she ran out of air and resurfaced. He was closer to the water.

"G-go away!" Kim yelled through chattering teeth.

"What are you doing out there on a night like this? Are you all right?"

"None of your business! Leave me a-alone!" The man turned away, and Kim saw him pull out a cell phone. Oh no, he was calling someone. Looking around in a panic, Kim saw the pier nearby, and ducked back under. Swimming as fast as she could, Kim made her way over to it, trying not to splash. Her lungs felt like they were bursting by the time she fell into the dock's shadow. Coming up, she caught one of the pilings and slid behind it, where she was hidden.

The old man talked, but in a normal voice that didn't carry this far. Kim watched him wander around, pick up her sweater, and then (thankfully) leave it with the rest of Kim's things as he headed back to his truck. Slowly, the old car chuttered away down the road. Kim sighed in relief. Slowly, she struck out for the shore again, feeling sick and miserable and very sorry for herself.

Running up the beach, Kim wrapped herself in her towel and plunked down on the sand. Now she wished she'd thought to bring a hot drink or something. Then again, she felt so nauseous from drinking all that seawater she wasn't sure she could hold one down. With numb fingers, she started dressing herself. Her throat felt a little scratchy—no. She couldn't be getting sick. That was just not fair.

Rising, Kim remembered the printout of the spell she'd brought with her. It was gone. Glancing around, Kim didn't see it anywhere, decided that it must have blown away, and shrugged it off. She wanted to go home and get straight into bed. At least tomorrow was Sunday and she could sleep in. Briefly, Kim toyed with trying to turn one of the mermaid club into a moon zombie, but that was always kind of scary. They were at Emma's house anyway, she remembered with a groan, as she started running back home. The lights were all on, and she decided to slip in the back.

"Where have you been?" Mr. Sertori bellowed as Kim tiptoed towards the stairs. She froze, and he came over to her. Of course. "I called Lana's mother, and she said you left their house an hour ago. You're soaked, what happened to you? Answer me, young lady!"

Kim gaped at him, completely at a loss for words. She hadn't thought about this part. Her Dad glared at her, and Kim bit her lip, starting to tear up. Then she got an idea, and without even stopping to look at it properly, spit it out.

"I walking home and some boys threw me off the pier. Older boys, I don't know who, it was too dark. They said it was just a joke and l-laughed at me." The shaking in her voice made it perfect. She could already see her Dad softening up. He hugged her, and said something that was probably supposed to be soothing. Kim didn't particularly care, he still kind of sucked at doing Mom's job, so she just went ahead and cried. She was frustrated and miserable and it would make her story more convincing—plus Kim was kind of getting rid of some of that salt water.

oYo

Seriously, don't drink seawater unless you're also drinking other fluids; you will dehydrate yourself.

Jessie: Cool! Could you please show your parents your tail? Forget what the characters said in the show; you'll be an instant celebrity, not a science experiment, and the world deserves to know that mermaids are real. (But be careful about giving too much personal info about yourself on the Internet, like where you live.)

MagicMaker494: Intriguing...


	8. Chapter 8: All of the Effect

Disclaimer: I don't own the show or the spell, the latter of which I got from the Mermaid Inforematal Center.

oYo

Kim started coughing again, and covered her mouth with a tissue. Her throat was raw and sandpapery, there was a pounding in her head, and her nose dripped like a leaky gutter. She was thoroughly miserable, but somehow not sick enough to stay home from school. Today had been _the_ **worst** day of Kim's life, bar none, she told herself. Throwing her backpack on the couch, she went to the computer, and began browsing the Internet, hoping it would make her forget about her cold.

Without even thinking about it, Kim found a mermaid site, and began scrolling through it. She got bored quickly. So many of these spells were the same! Plus the neon text was starting to make her eyes go wonky. She clicked the "home" icon, just as her eye fell upon something strange. Quickly, Kim returned to the page, and read the spell over. And then again.

_first you need to find a magical place (as rare as they are) one with a pool of water (such as the moon pool) but . . . it has to be a full moon derectly above you. stay in the water until the moon passed by then the next morning you will have all of the effect of rikki, cleo, and emma._

Rikki, Cleo and Emma.

**Rikki, Cleo and Emma.**

Somebody knew.

Then the computer screen cracked with a loud pop. Kim shrieked and accidentally tipped her chair over backwards, hitting her head with a thump. Dad wasn't home, and Kim scrambled away, staring in disbelief at the computer. The screen flickered fuzzily, turning funny colors around the spidery cracks. Kim smelled smoke.

Frightened, Kim scrambled back, shaking, and ran for the kitchen. Grabbing the nearest thing to a bucket she could find—a green serving bowl—she hastily filled it with water and ran back. She spilled most of it on the way, but had just enough left to throw on the computer. There was a dull boom, and the computer went completely dead. Black smoke began to slither out of the vents. Only now did Kim remember that dumping water on an electrical fire was a bad idea.

Kim sneezed, and flopped onto the couch with a moan. Worst. Day. Ever. Of course, that was when the door opened, and Lewis and Cleo walked inside. Lewis was just saying something about smelling smoke when the pair saw the computer.

"Woah…" Lewis said, after a moment.

"What happened to the computer?" Cleo demanded, coming right up to Kim.

"I don't know! I was just looking at a website and it exploded!"

Lewis went to the machine and began looking it over. Rising, Kim headed upstairs, hoping she'd be able to sleep this off. Cleo sat on the couch with a thump, staring in disbelief at the computer.

Fanning the smoke away, Lewis stifled a cough. "I think the hard drive's okay. You'll just need a new monitor."

Cleo groaned, resting her forehead on her hand as if she had a headache. "What did Kim do?"

"I don't know. But there's something I've been meaning to talk to you about." Lewis turned towards Cleo, lowering his voice. The secrecy made Kim stop in her tracks. She sat, up at the top of the stairs where they couldn't see her, and listened. "Max was out fishing late last night, and he saw someone swimming at the beach." Kim froze. Oh no. No, no, no, no.

"What?" Cleo sounded as incredulous as Kim felt.

Lewis went on. "It was a girl, probably younger than us by her voice, and she really wanted Max to mind his own business. She had this up on the beach." And reaching into his pocket, Lewis pulled out a folded piece of paper, handing it over to Cleo. "It's a spell to turn someone into a mermaid."

Kim almost—_almost_—panicked, but recovered just in time, and sat back against the wall. There was nothing to connect her to whoever this Max guy had seen. It could have been anyone. Wait, no…Max had picked up her sweater. He might recognize it. With an inner groan, Kim realized she'd have to get rid of the thing. It was one of her favorites, too.

"But who would try something like this?" Cleo asked. There was a crinkle of paper. "I mean, who'd know about mermaids without knowing how they worked?"

"I dunno. It could just be some kid goofing off." Kim knew Lewis was shrugging.

"But what if it isn't?" Cleo lowered her voice further, and Kim strained to hear. Was Cleo about to…"What if—"

"What the blazes happened to the computer?" Kim nearly screamed in disappointment. Dad! You're ruining everything! She decided to go to her room; she didn't want to get caught snooping.

Cleo's voice followed Kim up the stairs. "I dunno, we came back and it was like this. Kim said she was just looking at some website…"

As she flopped onto her bed, Kim shut her eyes, and wondered how she was going to do this. The Internet was being incredibly unhelpful. Maybe, maybe she was going about this the wrong way. What would Sherlock Holmes do? Find clues.

Kim sat up, and fumbled for a pen and paper. Flipping open a school notebook, she ripped out the page at the very back and flattened it on the top. She hadn't figured out exactly what she knew yet. Maybe she should have started here, instead of just looking around wildly. Clicking the ballpoint pen in and out as she thought, Kim jotted down a series of notes.

- Cleo mermaid. Poss Rikki, Emma, Lewis, Charlotte

- Turn when touch water—Cleo scared

- Full moon scary too

- Weird powers

- Zane rescued by mermaid fm boat. Miss Chatham's boat?

- Chatham acts all mysterious

- Zane obsessed w/mermaids but stopped. Talked about Mako Island

- Camping trip on Mako Island—Rikki & Emma & Lewis & Charlotte invite selves along, moon zombies

- Spell mentioning Cleo, Rikki, Emma, something about magical moon pool

- Cleo magically turns into perfect singer just for full moon

Kim just stared at the waiting dash for a long time, her mind blank. She was too tired to think straight. Crumpling up the paper and shoving it into her backpack, Kim slid under the covers, stifling another cough, and shut her eyes.

oYo


	9. Chapter 9: LIVE FISH

Disclaimer: The show belongs to Jonathan M. Schiff, the spell to the Mermaid Inforematal Center, and the movie the mermaids watch to MGM.

oYo

_to be a mermaid follow these steps._

_1:get in your tub.  
2:put (LIVE FISH) in the tub.  
3:wait till the full moon comes out.  
4:oh i also put worms._

_Then you a mermaid!:) XD XD  
_

oYo

Kim heard the door open, and jumped away from the fish tank. She was in Cleo's room again, and late afternoon light poured into the room. Cleo stopped up short, and stared at her younger sister. Trying to look casual, Kim put her hands behind her back.

"What are you doing?" Cleo asked.

"Nothing. I thought you were going to Emma's tonight."

"No, she's staying here. Why does it matter to you?" Cleo's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "You were waiting until I was gone to snoop around in my stuff?"

"No! No, I was just…checking your fish. Making sure they were fed." Cleo folded her arms, leaning on the doorpost. Kim tried not to wince, knowing this was going badly.

"Uh-huh. And you'd be able to tell how, exactly?"

"Never mind, bye!" Kim tried to slip out past Cleo, but her older sister caught her by the elbow. "Let go, that hurts!" She squealed, hoping Dad could hear her.

"It does not, you big baby."

"Cleo," Dad's voice rang out. "What's going on up there?"

"Nothing, Dad," Cleo called. She let go of Kim and bent down to her eye level. "If you've done anything, _anything_—"

"Bye!" Kim ran away to her room, slamming the door. Okay, this was going to be trickier than she'd thought. Kim considered trying the spell another night. Then she shook her head. The sooner she got this over with, the better.

A grim expression crossed Kim's face. She had to get all of the mermaids out of the way to try the spell. There was only one thing to do. Moon zombie mode. All of them. Plus it'd help her figure out exactly who was a mermaid and who wasn't.

With a sigh, Kim realized that she had a perfect opportunity to go get the spell's other main ingredient. Worms. She headed downstairs, skin already starting to crawl at the idea of those wriggly pink things.

oYo

Kim sat behind the stairs, spying on the trio of girls. Lewis, as usual, had invited himself along, and was going over some kind of checklist. Rikki, Cleo and Emma were "moonproofing" the house—covering up the windows, mostly. Every few minutes, to their annoyance, Lewis announced how many minutes till moonrise.

"That's the kitchen," Cleo said, coming into the living room and dusting off her hands.

Emma, standing on a stool to duct-tape the curtains to the wall near the big window, looked around. "Help me with this, will you?"

"Sure." As the two worked, Kim doodled quickly on a notepad. It was a rough sketch of the house, with everything they'd covered circled. She considered uncovering one of the windows, but no, they might notice and fix it too early.

As the group finished their work, Kim decided that a booby trap was her best bet. The front door pointed roughly eastward, where the moon would rise. They probably wouldn't go near it, but if they saw the reflection of the moon—Kim got an idea.

"Aaand moonrise in three, two, one…time," Lewis announced, looking up from his watch. The girls stopped. They exchanged looks, as if expecting something to happen. When nothing did, Rikki flopped on the couch, and Emma made one more round of the house.

"You said you brought some movies?" Cleo asked Lewis, coming over to him. He started digging around in his backpack.

As the group squabbled over a movie, Kim snuck her hand mirror out of her room, and set it on the counter in the kitchen, beside the sink. She wanted to make sure it was at a good angle, but was worried the mermaid coven might notice. Besides, she could tweak it when it was time. Then she went upstairs, and waited.

In her own room, Kim watched the sky darken. The clouds turned hot pink, purple near the water, and slowly, the moon rose. Kim could never get over just how huge it was. Finally, she decided it had been long enough, and darted into Cleo's room. Her sister's phone lay on the nightstand, and Kim grabbed it, dialing quickly.

"Hello? Is this Paul's Pizza?" She whispered. A grin flashed across her face. "Great, I'd like to order a large pizza with anchovies; can you deliver to 97 White Street? It's right off the Marine, you can't miss it. Sure, thirty minutes would be great! Bye!"

Allowing herself one evil chuckle, Kim hung up, and tiptoed back to her own room to wait. The mermaids had finally picked out a movie, and Kim kept herself busy trying to guess what was going on just by sound. It was pretty quiet.

Then, forty-five minutes later, Kim heard the doorbell ring. Showtime. She tiptoed down the stairs, hoping not to be noticed as Lewis argued with the pizza boy. Darting into the kitchen, she peeked up into the living room, grabbing the mirror. The three girls had scrunched down in their seats to avoid the moonlight. Angle it juuust riiight…

"Rodents of Unusual Size? I don't believe they exist," the blond man on the screen was saying. As one of the giant rats jumped on him and the soundtrack screamed, the moon's reflection hit the screen with a flash. Cleo and Rikki winced at the light, and then stiffened, their faces going blank. A little popcorn spilled out of Rikki's fingers.

Emma had shut her eyes, but she felt the other two move. "Guys, what is…" she trailed off as she opened her eyes, seeing the shaky reflection of the full moon. She went all zombie-like, just like the other two. Grinning, Kim ducked back down again, clutching the mirror to her chest. The pizza boy was getting pretty loud now, and Lewis tried to calm him down.

"Yeah, I think it must have been a prank," Lewis was saying at last. "Here."

"Thanks." It must have been a decent tip; the pizza boy sounded less irritated. "You want the pizza, or…"

"Sure, thanks." There was a creak of cardboard, and then the door swung shut. Lewis walked back into the living room, opening the box, and made a noise of disgust. "Anchovies, of course."

"Anchovies?" Emma sounded surprisingly perky. Kim made a dash for the stairs, glimpsing Emma all but dive into the box and begin picking off the little black fishes. Lewis had a look of growing horror on his face.

Then Kim was upstairs in Cleo's room. She knew her sister kept little plastic baggies for her fish in the bottom drawer of her nightstand, along with her net-on-a-stick. Grabbing them, she began hunting around in the tank. Her hands still shook, she was so excited.

"Heeere Hector," she whispered, chasing the orange fish around the tank with the green net. "Let's see if you can do a little magic."

oYo

Making a face, Kim flicked one of the worms towards the drain, where it drifted a little. One of Cleo's fish tried to take a nibble out of the pale, drowned thing, and Kim shuddered. There was a rumble of thunder from outside. Glancing towards the window, Kim saw dark clouds beginning to cover the moon. She frowned. The weather guy had said clear skies all night, hadn't he?

Hector rubbed up against Kim's leg, and she flinched away with a yelp. The little orange fish swam down towards the drain, playing innocent—at least, that's how it looked to Kim. She growled.

Soon the moonlight faded, leaving the bathroom dark. Kim groaned, and got out of the tub. No moonlight, no point in trying this. A crack of thunder made her jump, and she yelped a little. That wasn't normal. Tree branches clattered against the window, and as Kim pulled on her bathrobe, she heard the wind beginning to moan.

Starting to get scared, Kim turned on the light and started collecting Cleo's fish. The mermaids were still out, so sneaking them back into Cleo's room was no trouble. She tried not to step or spill on the sleeping bags on her sister's floor, and hoped Dad wouldn't notice. She counted the fish three times, double-checking the tub, and then threw away the drowned worms. Then, disappointed and cranky, Kim went to bed. The storm kept her awake for hours.

oYo

"Where are those girls?" Mr. Sertori asked from the breakfast table. Kim was busy pouring herself a bowl of cereal.

"I saw them here last night, dunno what they did after my bedtime," she replied. It was true, though she also wasn't really sure what had happened from eight o'clock onwards. She'd been in the tub, failed to turn into a mermaid, and then cleaned up the evidence. Every single one of Cleo's fish was back in its proper tank; she'd checked and double-checked.

Her dad muttered something about this not sitting right with him, and took another sip of coffee. But just as Kim sat down at the table, the door opened. In walked Rikki, Cleo, Emma and a harried-looking Lewis.

"Hi Dad!" Cleo joined them. Lewis dropped onto the couch and covered his face with his hands.

"Girls, where were you?"

"We just went for an early swim, that's all. Sorry to worry you, but you weren't up yet and we didn't want to wake you." Cleo sounded perfectly natural.

"Oh, well, all right then." Relieved, Mr. Sertori smiled at them. "Want any breakfast?"

"Eh, I think I'll pass," Rikki said, glancing with a grimace at the oatmeal Mr. Sertori was having.

Emma was a bit more subtle. "Sorry, I've got to get home. The storm knocked out my phone and my parents will be starting to worry. Thanks anyway."

Mr. Sertori leaned over to see Lewis a bit better. "Lewis?"

"I think I'll just go home and go to bed. Long night." Getting up, Lewis started gathering his stuff.

"Storm kept you awake, huh?" Mr. Sertori asked. Lewis shrugged and nodded. He seemed very distracted. "I don't blame you. Right out of nowhere, massive thunderstorm sweeps the coast, takes out some trees and even a couple of power lines, then disappears without a trace. Thankfully we didn't lose power or anything: some other people around here weren't so lucky." Kim noticed the alarmed glances the three mermaids exchanged, and felt just a little bit guilty. A little.

Kim finished her breakfast as the mermaid coven split up, and then went into the living room to watch TV. It was time to take a break from this mermaid thing. Behind her, Dad and Cleo finished their breakfasts and went to their own bathrooms.

But a few minutes later, just as Kim was really getting into the show, Cleo called for Dad. She sounded confused. Irritated, Kim turned up the volume. Then Cleo yelled Kim's name, and she turned around. Cleo stood on the stairs in her bathrobe, cupping a rag in her right hand.

"Do you know how a worm got into our bathtub?" Cleo asked. Kim stared at her for a second. Then she recovered and made a grossed-out face, backing away.

"Ew, no, why would I?" The disgust was not faked.

"I don't know, but you're the only other one who uses the tub, and I never put a worm in there."

"Don't ask me, go talk to Dad if worms are getting in the house." Kim folded her arms and backed away. "And get that thing away from me, it's disgusting." She left before Cleo could continue the interrogation, heading upstairs. The TV was still on.

Surprise, surprise, Kim found she had absolutely nothing to wear. She ducked into Cleo's room and began going through her closet. Just as she found the perfect top, she heard footsteps in the hall. Panicking, Kim ducked into the closet and pulled the doors shut. Crouching on Cleo's shoes—ow! Why did she own so many heels?—she waited, holding her breath.

Cleo walked inside and over to the fish tank, cheerfully greeting her pets. As always, she pulled on her rubber gloves, Kim recognized the noise. Kim didn't dare shift, even though a pointy high heel was digging into her ankle. Yuck, Cleo's closet smelled like salt water and perfume.

"What's that?" Uh-oh. Kim couldn't see what Cleo was doing, but there was a clink of glass. "Is that a _worm_?" Uh-oh times ten; she thought she might have grabbed a chunk of worm last night. Kim began to twist her fingers nervously.

Cleo pulled off one glove, and speed-dialed her phone. She started to pace, and Kim knew without seeing that her sister was gnawing on her lip.

"Hi, Lewis? _No_, calm down, it's okay, it wasn't your fault we got moonstruck." Oh, so that's what it was called? "We already told you, we didn't even look at the door, something reflected the moon onto the TV. I don't know, it never happened before—but there's something else going on. I caught Kim looking at my fish last night, acting really weird, then this morning there was a worm in the bathtub and one in Hector's tank."

Kim was starting to get a little dizzy. She risked one breath.

"Yeah, I know," Cleo went on, lowering her voice. Kim listened, practically rising on tiptoe. "Lewis, do you think she's on to us? No, I have no idea where the worms come in. I'll meet you and the girls at the Café and we can try to work this out, okay? Great, bye." She hung up with a beep.

Blood pounded in Kim's ears, and she was nearly trembling with adrenaline. Her mind kept repeating _I knew it, I knew it, I knew it!_ She could barely wait for Cleo to finish feeding her fish and leave, but knew that giving herself away now would be really bad. Counting the steps, Kim waited for Cleo to go downstairs, and then ran out as lightly as she could.

They were on to her. She couldn't risk doing anything to arouse their suspicion, or even attract attention. No sneaking into Cleo's room, no borrowing her stuff without asking, no more getting caught. Well, she'd have to do something to irritate Cleo: a sudden burst of good behavior would make Kim look even more suspicious. Relieved, Kim returned to retrieve that gorgeous green top. She couldn't wipe the smirk off her face the whole day. It was _on_ now.

oYo


	10. Chapter 10: Even A Pasta Shell

Disclaimer: I don't own the show or the spell, which is also from the Mermaid Inforematal Center.

Also, a combination of Real Life and this story growing in intensity (and chapter length) have made me decide to cut updates down to once a week, specifically Fridays. Sorry about that!

oYo

_Ok to become a mermaid there are a few steps…_

_You will need a shell real fake even a pasta shell will work.  
You will need a picture of the full moon or do this on the full moon  
You will need water_

_Now put your left hand in water and hold the shell in your at the center of the full moon and say…_

_Mystery of the moon give me my magic soon  
Power of the sea make me what I want to be a mermaid._

_If this works you will become like addicted to water,your legs will feel odd when you touch water,and on full moons you might act worry your tail will come soon._

_That is is how I am flopping my tail right now._

oYo

Kim was on the JuiceNet's computer again, trying to find another spell. They kept bringing up the full moon and pools. Her bathtub should have worked if it was just an ordinary pool or something. Oh well, might as well give this one a shot. Bleh.

Glancing around, Kim noticed Emma, Ash and Wilfred in deep conversation, all three looking worried. Well, no way Wilfred knew about mermaids, so it probably wasn't a big deal. Though the Café did look strangely empty. Kim turned back to the computer.

This was getting _sooo ooold_. Plus it was risky, now that the mermaids knew she was on to them. Making sure nobody was looking, Kim pulled out the paper with her mermaid notes on it. Skimming through them, she paused with her finger next to the name Chatham. She'd been all cryptic, and she'd hung out with the mermaid club a lot. It was worth a look. What was her whole name?

Kim typed in "Chatham," but there were way too many results. Then, on a whim, she typed in "Julia Dove." That got her a pretty recent obituary, a couple of hits from the town's oldest newspaper archive—oh, wait a second. Something about a rich boy—Karl, that was the name Miss Chatham had mentioned—accusing people of being mermaids. He'd said Julia was one, but she'd laughed it off. From the looks of things, so had everybody else. Sounded a lot like what Zane had been doing last year.

Then the pieces fell together. Julia had been a mermaid. So had Miss Chatham. Maybe she still was. Kim made a face at the mental image of the old bat as a mermaid. What had happened to Karl the mermaid-hunter? She searched his name, looking for the inevitable obituary.

There wasn't one. Kim started getting excited. Karl was still around, and from what Miss Chatham had said, he hadn't gotten over the mermaid thing like Zane had. Maybe, just maybe, she could team up with this guy. After all, if he'd been looking for mermaids this long, he'd have to know some stuff Kim didn't.

It took a little more searching, but Kim found Karl Lyons' address. He was still pretty rich, though it looked like he was turning into some kind of old recluse. Jotting down the address, Kim gathered her things and deleted her history.

As she headed out the door, Kim heard Wilfred say something about budget cuts. She shrugged it off, still focused on her new discovery. Kim completely forgot about the spell lying in the JuiceNet printer, untouched.

oYo

Karl's doorbell was one of those fancy ones that sounded like a gong. Kim bounced on the balls of her heels impatiently, and only now began to wonder just how she was going to convince him to help. It had been a long time, maybe he was in a wheelchair or had Alzheimer's or something else icky and awkward.

She rang the bell again. And then again three minutes later. Kim timed herself with her watch to make sure. Okay, that was enough niceness: time to be the annoying kid sister again. She flattened the doorbell with her thumb and held it down, listening to the endless distant gonging. She tapped her foot.

Finally, the inner door swung open, and an old geezer glared down at Kim through the glass door. It took her a second to register that he was surprisingly young-looking, his hair steel grey and still mostly there, only a few wrinkles around his eyes. He actually looked a bit like one of those well-aging movie stars, though the expensive clothes were probably part of that. Then he spoke, or rather snapped.

"I don't want any cookies, magazine subscriptions, or anything else you're selling, so go away." He started closing the door.

"I'm not selling anything! I wanted to talk to you about mermaids," Kim blurted out.

Karl stopped. He looked harder at Kim. The annoyed look grew almost amused, in an angry way. He laughed bitterly.

"I thought after fifty years people would have forgotten. Stopped taunting me about it. What do you want from me now?" He straightened and gestured to himself. "Here I am, the crazy mermaid hunter, take a good look!"

"You don't understand, I believe you," Kim said. Karl snorted, beginning to shut the door, and she started to get mad. "It's true, I've seen them myself! My sister and two of her friends are mermaids; they've got weird powers and the full moon makes them crazy and Miss Chatham hangs around them a lot and strange stuff happens all around them!" She stopped, a little out of breath.

Karl just stared at her. Straightening, Kim folded her arms. "I thought you'd be able to help me, but if you're just going to yell at me, then fine, I can do this myself!" Whirling, she started to flounce away.

Karl's voice was calmer now. "Wait." Kim looked over her shoulder. Taking a slow breath, Karl opened the glass door, and came out. "You're _certain_ your sister's a mermaid? Absolutely sure, you'd testify in court to it if you had to certain?"

"Positive."

Karl ran a hand through his hair, brow furrowing in thought. "You'd...better come inside, then. I think we both have a lot to tell each other." Kim's frown faded.

"Great!" Kim skipped inside, Karl following her. The house was mostly paneled in dark wood, maybe mahogany. Holding out an arm, Karl gestured towards the living room, and Kim sat on one of the black leather seats. Karl left, probably to get something, and Kim stayed where she was.

The chair was tall enough for her to swing her feet, making her feel like a little kid. The whole room was dark and subdued, but still classy. It looked like hardly anyone ever came in here, except that it was clean, and the plant in the corner was growing well. Of course, that was assuming it was a real plant; its deep green, heart-shaped leaves were shiny enough to be plastic. The coolest part of the room was that instead of a coffee table, there was a large fish tank in the middle of the room, full of brightly-colored tropical fish.

Kim was staring at the fish when Karl returned, depositing a few manila folders crammed with papers on the tabletop. Sitting back, the girl clasped her hands in her lap, to look as grown-up as possible, and looked up at Karl. The older man sat down beside Kim, a little space away, and began flipping through the folder.

"How much do you know, actually know, about the mermaids?" He asked. Kim reached into her backpack and pulled out her list. She read off each item, eyeing Karl the whole time. He didn't look up, just dug through the folders, arranging the papers in piles. One sheet had a couple of different angles of a mermaid, another a detailed charcoal sketch. There were maps and typed-out sheets of text, even a few faded photos of islands and fish and stuff.

"...And when they see the full moon, or even its reflection, they go nuts. Emma got crazy hungry and they all started acting like zombies," Kim finished. Karl was stroking his chin, frowning at his papers. His hands were rough, ridges of veins weaving through them.

"Did you ever see any of them as mermaids?" He still didn't look up as he spoke. "Remember, courtroom-level evidence."

"Almost. Cleo shut the door before I could get a good look, and later she said it was a costume. They always run away when they get wet," Kim said. Karl nodded slowly. "I know it'll be hard to get real evidence of them, plus they'd just lie about it, so I decided to turn myself into a mermaid. It's…not going very well."

"Of course not." He smirked a little. "I doubt you'd be able to find the right information off an internet site run by teenage girls." He unfolded an old, floppy map and laid it out across the table. He pointed to one very familiar island, which was ringed by little red x-marks. "As far as I can tell, everything revolves around here: Mako Island. From what you've said, whatever magic caused the change came from something here."

"So do you think if we look on Mako Island, we'll find something?" Kim asked.

"I think it'd be impossible for us not to. We'll have to be ready, though; if the mermaids think we're on to them, they could become...dangerous." He grimaced a little, seeming to remember something.

"Dangerous?" Kim bit her lip. "Dangerous like how?"

"I couldn't say. With powers like theirs, they could do some truly unpleasant things to us if they found out we were trying to expose them. All the more reason for you to gain powers of your own to match them."

"Yeah, right." Kim wasn't so sure about this, and it was clear in her voice. "So…how do we do this?"

Karl straightened and faced Kim.

"Go home, act normal, throw off their suspicions. When I've made all the arrangements, I'll call you. Can you keep all of this a secret?"

"I've done okay so far, haven't I?"

Karl chuckled a little. "Yes, I admit it, you've been a lot more subtle than I ever was. You're a surprisingly devious little girl."

"I am _not_ a little girl."

"Right." Karl looked pretty sincere, even as Kim scrutinized him. There was a suspicious sort of twinkle in his eye, though.

"Oh, wait a second." Folding her paper of notes in half, Kim scribbled her phone number on the back and handed it to Karl. He accepted it and stood as she did. There was a gentler look in his eye now. Quietly, Kim headed for the door. She was still almost wriggly with excitement, but now a little scared. What could an angry mermaid do to her? The human body was, what, eighty percent water? As Kim opened the door, Karl spoke up again.

"Thank you, Kim. You don't know what it's been like, being laughed at for years because the truth is too wild for anyone else to believe, and then having someone else walk in with the proof." He managed a half-smile, and Kim returned it.

"Hey, whatever gets those mermaids, right?"

"Right. Goodbye."

"Bye." Kim let the door swing shut behind her. She decided to go to Lana's house, give herself an alibi. She was getting so close now—but it was also getting more serious. Who knew what the mermaids would do to keep from getting found out? Kim shivered a little. She had to stay on her toes from now on. Well, at least until she got the tail, then she'd be on her fins or fluke or something.

oYo

"Kim, why are you washing the dishes?" Mr. Sertori asked. Kim glanced up at him, and shrugged.

"I feel like it." She scrubbed out a plate and ran the tap over it.

"But it's Cleo's job."

"I know." She set the plate in the drying rack. Then Kim looked up and met her father's eye. "Something wrong?"

"Is Cleo making you do this? Everyone pulls their own weight around here," Mr. Sertori began, as Cleo started down the stairs.

"Dad, it's okay, Cleo's got a big project for school she has to work on tonight, so I decided to just do this for her. You know, get rid of a little stress." Cleo stopped partway down the stairs and goggled at Kim. With a smirk, Kim added, "Besides, she's folding the laundry for me. We just swapped for today."

"Oh, well, all right then." Mr. Sertori looked pleased, and headed away. Cleo waited until he was gone, then ran over to Kim, glaring.

"What are you doing?" Kim just kept grinning smugly. She set one bowl down with a dramatic flick, and Cleo jumped back to avoid the water droplets. "If I have to do your job then you are _not_ getting paid for this."

"Do you want Dad to know that you bribe me to do your chores?" Kim replied. She rolled her eyes as Cleo kept glaring. "Come on, it's one little basket of laundry."

"Then you fold it," Cleo snapped.

"Shouldn't you be getting on that project?" Dad's voice floated out of the back room. Shaking her head, Cleo grabbed her backpack and headed upstairs. Kim waved, and Cleo slammed her bedroom door.

Internally, Kim sighed in relief. Cleo was back to her old, obnoxious self. No idea how Rikki and Emma were, but then maybe Cleo and Lewis hadn't told them about their suspicions. Lewis might be a problem. Well, that guy was about as subtle as a foghorn; Kim would be able to tell what he was thinking the minute he showed up.

Speak of the devil, in came Lewis. He barely looked at Kim, just headed upstairs calling Cleo's name. Kim considered eavesdropping, but decided that might draw some attention—plus likely as not he was just here to help with Cleo's homework. Kim hadn't been lying about the big project or Cleo being stressed.

As Kim finished washing up and headed upstairs, she did notice a little bit of what Cleo and Lewis were saying. It was hard to hear, but she paused at the top of the stairs.

"…another one of those spells at the Café," Lewis was whispering. "And guess who was on one of the computers? Kim. It printed while she was there."

"Well, at least she doesn't know about Mako." Kim had to stifle a giggle at that. Confirmation was always nice. "How are we going to distract her this time?"

Kim headed off to her room. Whatever their plan to distract her turned out to be, she'd try and play along, make them less suspicious. Then she'd turn into a mermaid. Dropping onto her bed, Kim started fantasizing about that moment. She'd walk into the JuiceNet—no, find them at Mako and jump into the water or splash herself. The looks on their faces…it was going to be delicious.

oYo


	11. Chapter 11: 22 Minutes and 14 Seconds

Mermaid Inforematal Center and mermaids and other stuff.

oYo

_1) get ur fav neclace on(on the night of the full moon)_

_2) then if u want 2 get the power 2 freeze water a cold bath, the power 2 steam water a hot bath, and exactly in the middle(temperature) for the power 2 move water_

_3) then put 6 and 2/5 cups of salt in the water_

_4) next put body wash(soap) from the waist down, with the color u want ur tail 2 b_

_5) then soak for 22 minutes and 14 seconds_

_6) get out of the water and don't touch water 4 the next 13 hrs and 47 minutes. hope u hav vun! _

oYo

Kim frowned at the spell. She circled the three powers, and the order to not touch water. She'd stopped looking for spells to actually change her, instead scanning for tidbits of possibly real info, like the thing she'd seen about Rikki, Cleo and Emma in that computer-exploding spell. Looking down the page at the other printouts, Kim noticed more references to magical pools and full moons; okay, that part was confirmed, dead and buried.

"What's that?" Cleo's voice startled her, but Kim recovered quickly. She looked up at Cleo, resisting the urge to hide the notebook. They were both in the JuiceNet, which today was slightly busy.

"Looking up stupid mermaid spells. I found one ages back, when I mistook that project of yours for the real thing, and they're really funny. Look at this one." Kim pointed to the paper. "I'm collecting the really weird ones."

"Really? Emma found one in the printer a couple of days ago," Cleo said, glancing sideways at Kim. "Was that yours?"

"The one with the pasta shell? That's where it went!"

"Okay. I don't think Emma still has it, though. What do the circles mean?"

"Stuff that keeps popping up." Kim grinned mischievously. "I think I'm going to try writing one and posting it online, then see how many people are dumb enough to go 'OMG it worked!'" Cleo chuckled a little.

"So, that's all?" Kim bit her lip, and Cleo turned a hard (but slightly teasing) stare on her. "Kim?"

"I...may have tried some of them. Just for fun," Kim said. She didn't have to fake the embarrassment, remembering how dumb some of those spells had been. Cleo looked again at the spells, and cracked up. "Hey, you've sung karaoke; at least this doesn't make me look like an idiot in public!"

That made Cleo stop laughing. Rolling her eyes, Kim shut the notebook and shoved it into her backpack. With any luck this would take care of the whole "she knows" thing. After all, they couldn't pin the moonstruck-ness on her, and they'd never even seen her use one of these spells.

"Hey, you said they were dumb spells yourself, don't be so touchy," Cleo said.

"Forget it." Kim headed out, doing a mental fist pump. Success! Now she'd tell the others and all the suspicion would go away. Of course, Rikki would probably start teasing, but that was better than whatever she might do as an angry mermaid.

Actually, though, writing her own spell sounded kind of fun. Wasn't it recommended on one of those websites? Stopping at a bench outside the JuiceNet, Kim sat down and flipped open the notebook. Oh, yeah, here it was.

_MAKE YOUR OWN SPELL making your own spell works quite well. trust me make it origional and all you the more you you put in your spell the more energy it will have and the more energy the more the spell will work._

Flipping the page and looking at its blank back, Kim pulled out a pen. Then she paused. How was she supposed to do this? Her mind went blank. Poetry wasn't one of her things, ever. Poetry? Hadn't her English teacher made her write some a while back? How had she done that?

Oh, yeah, brainstorm a bunch of words and ideas, then try to put them together with a meter or something—counting syllables. Kim started writing down whatever words came into her head.

Full moon, sea water, foam, moonlight, magic, night sky, scales, gleaming scales, fluke, fins, swimming, mermaid, ocean, deep, blue, fish, coral, dappled light, power, stars, Poseidon (she felt very proud of herself for remembering that dude from Greek Mythology), ice, steam, pool, tail, legs, gills, streaming hair, water droplets, charm, spell, sorcery, enchantment, white, bubble.

In midnight moonlight

I In moonlig

When moon and ocean

In full moon

When full moon's light and ocean meet

Give me a tail instead of feet

Powers over the water

And powers over water, ice or steam—steam or ice?

So I can match my sister and her The other mermaids here Now

Give me powers

Give

Send me powers over the water

So I can match the other mermaids' power

Send New Grant power over drop and wave wave and drop

Their So evil magic I may stop

The mermaids of

A mermaid make me here this night

By this charm in the moonlight

Well, who said it needed to be a long spell? Kim copied it onto a fresh page and read it aloud under her breath. Yeah, it sounded pretty good. A lot better than most of those dumb spells; they couldn't even rhyme half of the time! Now, did she need to add instructions? If this was to try and fool stupid people on the web, maybe she should add something ridiculous, get back for the skinny-dipping and worms and stuff.

Eh, later. She didn't have a time limit on this or anything. Kim flipped the notebook shut and started back home, feeling rather pleased with herself. Suspicions: deflected.

oYo

Kim was in her room, doing homework (her math teacher had been nagging her), when she heard the mermaid club arguing downstairs. They were studying, too, and had barely reacted when she'd walked in. Well, whatever they were talking about was bound to be more interesting than these problems. Kim hopped off her bed and went to the top of the stairs.

"Cleo, just calm down, it's not like I'm moving away," Emma was saying.

"You might as well be! You'll be on the other side of the planet!"

"Not the whole time, but her point stands," Rikki said. "Besides, who's going to make sure you don't get moonstruck and do something crazy? You'll be kind of far away from the Moon Pool."

Relieved, Cleo chimed back in. "She's right. Or what if something else happens here and we need you?"

"I can take care of myself, and so can you—but you'll have Lewis, too," Emma replied, trying hard to stay calm.

"Guys, I think Emma should go," Lewis said. There was a brief silence, and Kim nearly facepalmed. Lewis…"It's _a_ _trip around the world_. London, Paris, New York City, Tokyo—this is an amazing opportunity, and I don't think you should give it up just because of, ah, a fishy little problem. And, you know, maybe there are more people like you out there you might run into this way."

"No," Cleo said. By the tone Kim could tell she was folding her arms. "We're supposed to stick together. The three of us, just like the originals."

Emma was starting to get a little shrill. "Thank you, Mum, I guess that decides it!" A book slammed shut. "Sorry, I've got to go home—it's suddenly become very hard to study in here!" The front door slammed.

Kim slipped back into her room. Math homework seemed less intimidating at the moment. She got back to work.

oYo

A week went by before the phone call Kim was waiting for finally came. She only just got to it in time, snatching it up before Dad could. There had been a few close calls earlier, particularly when Dad and Cleo noticed how much Kim was guarding the phone. Quickly, she turned away, and crossed her fingers that Dad would think it was just a girl thing.

"Hi, Kim Sertori."

Karl didn't waste any times on pleasantries. "I've found the Moon Pool."

"You have?" Kim exclaimed. She realized Dad was still listening, and lowered her voice. "You have?"

"It's in the dormant volcano. I took some photos I can show you."

"Okay, great! When? Where?" She glanced back at Dad. He was frowning a little, confused or suspicious or both. Hastily, she mouthed "school project" at him, and he relaxed a little.

"My house. Come around when you can."

"Right, sure. Later!" Karl hung up. Kim set down the phone, already feeling butterflies beginning to flutter in her stomach.

"What school project?"

"Um—town history," Kim said, quickly turning to face her Dad. "I'm supposed to go interview this old geezer about the fifties or something, and I did back at the school, but he was going to get me some old photos for my presentation, so I'm going to go pick them up."

"I'll drive you over," Dad said, probably deciding that this was the best way to make absolutely sure nothing sneaky was going on under his nose. Remembering how hard he'd been for Cleo to convince about Lewis, Kim winced a little. They both headed out to the car.

The drive was brief and silent. Kim knew her Dad was suspicious, so she stifled her excitement. Of course, thinking she was interested in some boy would keep him off the scent, and probably Cleo too when she got wind of it. Then they were pulling up in front of Karl's house.

"You're sure this is the right address? This is a nice part of town," Mr. Sertori said.

"Positive," Kim replied, unbuckling and hopping out of the car. Dad climbed out the other side, and they both headed to the gate. Karl came out the front door and down the steps. Quickly, Kim thought up a lie as he opened the gate.

"Dad, this is Karl Lyons, the guy I interviewed for my project," she said, and the two men shook hands. Karl didn't bat an eyelid.

"Nice to meet you. Don Sertori," Dad said, grinning.

"Karl Lyons, and likewise. You run a fishing business, don't you?" Karl glanced at Kim, bouncing on the balls of her feet.

"You've got the photos?" She asked.

"In the living room. I'll join you in a minute to explain them fully."

"Thanks!" Kim darted inside, and Karl kept up the small talk with Mr. Sertori. The quiet noises faded as the door swung shut behind her, and she walked into the living room. There were the photos, spread across the fish tank table.

Kim ran over and dropped onto the couch, staring with huge eyes. The pictures showed a few tunnels, one with a set of carved steps. There was one cave, dark and gleaming, with a rocky crater in the roof. And there, right in the middle, was a brilliant blue pool, ringed by stones and illuminated with light from the crater. Just looking at the pictures sent a tingle down Kim's spine.

She heard the front door open and close. Karl entered the living room and sat down beside Kim.

"Nice man. Did you ever think how ironic it was that he's a fisherman?" He asked.

Kim wasn't really in the mood for small talk. "These are so cool!" She gestured to the photos. "It's got to be the real thing, I just know it!"

"Couldn't be anything else. I've been there; you can practically smell the magic," Karl replied. He started arranging the photos. "There are two ways in, one near a patch of rapids partway up a stream, the other an underwater tunnel. You can see the entrance here." He pointed to a paler patch of blue visible in the pool. "The mermaids must have greater than human lung capacity to use this one; we would need scuba gear."

"Greater than whosit?"

"They can hold their breath—or breathe underwater."

"Oh. When do we go? The next full moon's coming up," Kim said, bouncing in place.

"Can you get out of the house without being noticed?"

Kim bit her lip, and stopped bouncing. "I…haven't really before."

"Then you'll have to continue lying to your father, I think. I'll meet you on Mako for the next full moon."

Kim's brow furrowed as she thought. "Maybe…well, I'll think of something."

"I'll get you my phone number and some old photographs," Karl said, standing.

"What?"

"So you can contact me when you reach Mako Island, and so your dad doesn't know there is no school project."

Kim blinked, registering what he'd just said, and gave her head a little shake. "Right. Thanks."

oYo

Deliberately mediocre poetry is easier than trying to do a good job, but not as much fun.


	12. Chapter 12: Mako at Midnight

Disclaimer: I don't own H2O.

Okay, if there was anyone at all who was just here for the mermaid spells, those are done now.

oYo

Kim had forgotten all about the full moon until she walked into the living room one evening and saw Cleo and Rikki there. She stopped up short, recovered before they could see her, and headed into the kitchen.

"Weren't you guys going to Emma's house this time?" Kim asked, looking in the fridge for something to eat. Dad needed to go grocery shopping again. Gah. Why wasn't there ever any good food?

"Her parents are too busy _packing_," Cleo said. "They don't want three teenagers in their hair."

"Whatever." Shutting the fridge, Kim headed upstairs. Without even thinking about it, she went into her room, grabbed a drinking glass, and pressed it to the floor to listen.

"Where's Lewis?" Rikki asked.

"Emma's. Trying to get her to come," Cleo said, and sighed. "It's like she's already left. Has she talked to you at all for the last week?"

"Nope. Just Lewis." There was a faint squeak, like couch springs.

"Maybe we shouldn't have been so pushy." Cleo was still pacing around, by the soft footsteps.

"Maybe. It is kind of a big thing, seeing the world."

"But who knows what could happen to her out there? She could get caught, she could meet other bad mermaids like Charlotte, we don't know!"

"Yeah, we don't, she should totally stay," Rikki said, in a bored tone of voice.

Cleo turned again. "But this seems to really mean a lot to her."

"I know."

"We've all had to give stuff up for this…"

"Would you please just stop that?" Rikki snapped, with another squeak of couch springs. She put on a Gollum voice. "We wants Emma to stay with us, precious, yes. No, no, Emma must leave, precious, she wants to go!"

"Sorry, I'm just confused."

Rikki's voice grew subdued. "Likewise. Whatever happens, this isn't going to be easy."

Kim decided to stop listening, and got up, putting the glass back on her nightstand. She plopped down on her bed, thinking. Despite what she'd said to Karl, she didn't have a clear plan for getting to Mako. She didn't know how to drive a boat, and doubted she could rent one just out of the blue. Maybe…Lewis was going to be here. He had a boat. Kim frowned, trying to remember how it worked. Oh well, it couldn't be too fancy. She grinned, and grabbing her backpack, began filling it with stuff.

oYo

The mermaids and Lewis (sans Emma, who had not decided to come) were in the living room, playing some game. It was just about Kim's bedtime. Quietly, she tiptoed down the stairs, holding her breath. Her socked feet barely made a noise, but each creak made her freeze.

"How come both of you are such terrible artists?" Lewis asked, looking at one of the notebooks they were using. Rikki threw a handful of popcorn at him.

"I am not terrible!" Cleo protested. "You try drawing clowns riding elephants on a beach, see how that turns out!" Kim reached the back door and slipped outside.

Her backpack was already waiting behind a bush, fully packed and ready. She'd even managed to sneak Lewis's keys earlier, while they'd been moonproofing the house. Quickly, Kim opened it and pulled on her shoes, gloves and coat. Her breath clouded the air. Pulling on the backpack, Kim ran down the jetty to Lewis's boat.

Dumping her backpack in, she clambered inside, and started the motor. It sounded startlingly loud in the night silence, and Kim almost wanted to shush it. Sitting, she started to steer out of the bay, towards the black smear of Mako Island.

The full moon was already over the horizon. Kim sped up, suddenly worried that she might arrive too late. Her ears were already freezing, and she mentally slapped herself for forgetting a hat. The trip took an agonizingly long time, about ten minutes. Kim didn't see Karl's boat, or any sign of him, but she steered up to one of the flat, grey beaches and dragged the boat ashore. She got her feet and shins thoroughly soaked, and hoped she wouldn't get another cold out of this.

Even in winter, Mako was alive with noise; bugs, birds and night animals, all chirring and twittering and growling in the foliage. Pulling out her electric torch, Kim turned it on, took a deep breath, and headed into the woods.

It didn't take her too long to find the stream Karl had told her about. It was loud and frothy, looking like black oil in the moonlight. Carefully, Kim followed it up into the island, moving slowly across the rocks.

The slowly-rising moon helped light her path, when it showed through the trees. It was windy, and the rustling leaves sent rather different chills down Kim's spine. Licking her lips nervously, she kept going. Where was Karl? Inside the cave already? She was so intent on her path that she didn't notice the slightest hint of red lick the edge of the moon.

Then, finally, Kim found the black tunnel entrance. She studied it hard, but it matched the photo despite the lighting change. It was about the size and shape of a slide; how had Karl gotten in the first time? That must have been funny; that old guy sliding down here in those expensive clothes of his.

Sitting at the entrance, Kim held up her flashlight and slid in. She couldn't help squealing as she went; it was pitch-black and she was sure she slid through a spiderweb at one point. Then she hit dirt, and found herself in a wider tunnel. Starting to breathe faster, Kim stood up, and headed down the passage.

Kim's breathing echoed around the dark tunnel. Somewhere in the distance, water was dripping. The walls gleamed dryly, not slimy the way Kim had imagined they'd be after seeing the photos. She could already feel _something_ about this place; maybe it was her mind playing trick on her, but it seemed warmer in here. She couldn't see her breath anymore, for starters.

Then Kim was going up the rough stone steps. The doorway looked almost carved, arching above her, and the cave before her was lit up. Slowly, she walked into the Moon Pool cave. For probably the first time in her life, Kim was truly speechless.

The cave walls gleamed like obsidian, curving away from her and arching towards a high roof. The volcanic crater's broken, jagged edges stabbed up at the starry sky. Even without the moon, faint light illuminated the cavern, reflecting in the water and casting weird rippling reflections on the walls. Kim's torch seemed weak and fake compared to this light, and Kim turned it off, almost ashamed for bringing it here.

Then, a sliver of moonlight dropped through the hole and into the pool. A few bubbles rose to the surface to meet it. Kim realized that it was time. Hastily, she pulled off her coat, gloves and shoes, and screwing up her face, dropped into the pool. It was startlingly warm, and she came up with a gasp. The salt tanged against her skin, and she wiped her face.

More moonlight began running through the crater, and the bubbling grew. It tickled beneath Kim. As she watched, droplets of water began rising up the moonbeams. She let out a laugh of sheer joyful amazement.

But as the moon neared the halfway mark, Kim noticed something strange. Redness was creeping across it, covering a little more than half of the moon by now. The once-white light reddened, and Kim felt a shiver run down her spine. This didn't feel right. The rising water began to look almost like drops of blood.

Kim wanted to get out, began kicking her way towards the side, but stopped. This was creepy, but maybe it was supposed to happen. After all, she'd never actually seen this before. Besides, the mermaids were a little scary themselves; it made sense that they'd have a freaky transformation.

As the last of the white light reddened, Kim repeated that thought over and over in her mind. She wondered if she was supposed to turn into a mermaid right away, or not. It didn't look like it was happening now, so Kim decided to try touching water in the morning.

Finally, the moon passed over the crater, and the light faded. It was still slightly pink. Relieved, Kim swam to the side of the pool and heaved herself out. Yanking her towel out of her backpack, she started rubbing herself down, already beginning to shiver in the late autumn air. Karl had never shown; oh well, she'd call him in the morning however things turned out. Gathering her things and pulling her winter clothes back on, Kim started out.

oYo

It was almost nine-thirty when Kim woke up the next morning. Glancing at her clock, she rolled over and started going back to sleep. Blinking, she happened to see her backpack lying beside her bed. Then she remembered what had happened last night, and catapulted out of bed.

Bathroom—she wanted to try it out somewhere she could dry off fast first. Slamming the door, she ran the tap over one hand, and backed away, holding it up. Water trickled down to her elbow. No change.

No.

This wasn't fair.

Then a strange, bubbling feeling swept up her body, as if the foaming water in the Moon Pool had filled her veins. As Kim looked down, her body seemed to vanish, turning into glittering water. Then she was solid again—but her pajamas were gone. Instead, a scaly, coppery sort of bra covered her chest, and yes, a matching _tail_ where her legs had been.

Before Kim had a chance to react, she fell flat on her face with a thump, bumping her nose on the floor. Pushing herself up on her elbows, Kim looked back down at her tail, lifting it a little. It didn't feel like legs in a costume; her bones were all different, and there seemed to be a lot more of them. Kim burst into almost hysterical giggles. She'd done it!

She was also wet, her hair stringy as if half-dried. Scooting forward on her stomach, Kim grabbed her bath towel and began drying herself off, unable to stop grinning. Here she was, hiding in the bathroom, drying off like Cleo probably did loads of times. It took an awfully long time, especially with Kim's hair, but she knew when she was done: she could feel her clothes coming back before they actually appeared.

Once she'd transformed back, Kim ran straight downstairs, barely even registering Dad in the living room. But as she ran for the door, he yelled something, and she skidded to a halt.

"Kim, phone call for you from that Lyons man!" He repeated, holding up the phone. Kim blinked, turned around, and went over to her Dad, taking the phone with a mumbled "thanks." She ran upstairs, clutching the phone to her ear.

"Kim, I've been trying to get ahold of you since yesterday," Karl began, but Kim interrupted.

"Karl, I went to the Moon Pool and it worked! The water got all funny and the moon turned red and now I'm a mermaid! We did it!"

"It worked?"

"Yeah!"

"…I've been trying to call to tell you not to go; I was worried what the lunar eclipse might do to the pool." Karl sounded both relieved and a bit let down.

"Lunar eclipse?"

"The moon turning red."

"Oh. Well, I guess you had nothing to worry about." Kim couldn't help sounding a bit teasing.

"I'm already at Mako Island; meet me there," Karl said. "I'll be on the northernmost beach—the same one you came in by last night, if these tracks are yours. Don't be seen, especially by the mermaids, and be cautious as you come—they may have noticed me."

"Sure, I'll be there in five seconds!" Hanging up, Kim ran back down the stairs. She threw the phone onto the couch in passing and charged outside, letting the door slam behind her. Darting barefoot across the yard, she dove off the jetty into the water. For a second, it was so cold that she could barely move. Then the bubbling feeling came again, and the cold became—not any less, but not numbing, just brisk enough to make her alert.

Kim nearly whooped underwater. She looked up at the surface, and heard Dad's voice. Even though instinctively Kim wanted to go up for another breath, she could tell she didn't need it yet. Turning, she started swimming away.

Swimming with a tail was so different, but it came incredibly naturally. It didn't feel like having legs in a costume—Kim could tell she had a lot more bones in there now, and it rippled beautifully. Strange new muscles strained and pumped as she swam, propelling her through the water faster than she'd ever gone.

Then Kim decided to really push herself. She burst into a super swim, zooming through the water like a torpedo. Bubbles rushed past her face and down her body, but so fast that they were only distortions in her vision. The sea had never looked so clear.

Off to the side, Kim glimpsed something else shooting through the water. Realizing it was one of the mermaids, she swerved away, but the mermaid started following her. Oh no.

Up ahead, Kim glimpsed the reef, and sped up. Mako Island wasn't much farther. She started weaving back and forth, trying to throw her mermaid pursuer off to no avail. Surfacing, Kim took a breath, and saw someone standing on the beach ahead. He waved, and she guessed it was Karl. Kim dove, showing off her fluke.

Looking back, Kim realized that her pursuer was Emma, even though she was still pretty far away. She wondered if the other mermaids were around here, too. Probably already on Mako. Maybe after she and Karl met, she could go surprise them. She ducked into the reef, and waited for Emma to go away.

Fish tickled Kim as they passed, brushing her skin with translucent fins. As she waited in the underwater silence, she suddenly felt flannel clinging to her body. Looking down, Kim let out a startled noise as her tail vanished, and her human form returned. The cold hit her like a punch to the stomach, and her lungs started screaming immediately.

Panicking, Kim started swimming for the surface. Now it seemed impossibly far away. More bubbles escaped her mouth as she struggled, trying to fight her way back up. The pressure in her head built, and she shrieked. Gagging on a mouthful of salt water, Kim lost consciousness.

oYo


	13. Chapter 13: The Trouble with Eclipses

Disclaimer: I don't own H2O, and only kind of sort of maybe own Karl.

oYo

Kim opened her eyes. White ceiling patterned with pale green leaves. Quiet, regular beeping noise. Stomach and throat both feeling like they'd been turned inside-out and scraped raw. There was a plug thing in her nose, but it was pumping air in or something, and a little pinprick taped to her elbow. Sticky round thing on her chest, under a starchy nightgown. She lay in a bed, more plush than hers at home, under a couple of blankets.

There was a sort of sob beside her, and Kim looked around to see—

"Mum?" She croaked, eyes widening. Her mother lunged forward and seized Kim in a hug, nearly bursting into tears. Shakily, Kim returned it, trying to remember what was going on. A door behind Mum opened, and Cleo and Dad burst in. It looked like they'd both been crying too. Mum let go and sat back, letting Kim flop back on the bed.

"What…" Kim looked up at her family. "Whahappen?"

"You almost drowned, sweetheart," Mr. Sertori said, his voice shaking. "Somehow you ended up near the reef all by yourself, really far down. Emma was out by Mako, she spotted you. From what the doctors said, she was just in time."

"Oh. Yeah." Kim shuddered, remembering those terrifying last few seconds, and her Mum reached over to stroke her hair. There was something muddled and awful after that, but thinking about it gave Kim a headache.

"I don't know how you got out there so fast," Mr. Sertori said, shaking his head. "Do you remember?"

Kim glanced past him at Cleo. Her sister's expression was perfectly clear: I know about the tail, we aren't talking about it now. With a sigh, Kim looked back at Dad and shook her head.

"I just went in by the jetty, dunno why, I think I was still half-asleep or something. It was really, really cold. Next thing I know…" she gestured to the room. She had one of those paper hospital wristbands on.

"Try to get some rest, darling," Mum said, kissing her on the forehead like she was six or something. Kim didn't mind. She _was_ still pretty tired. Settling back into the bed, Kim tried to forget about all the medical stuff attached to her body, and went back to sleep.

oYo

It was a moody, grey morning, and the hospital was lit by fluorescent lights. Kim was in the bathroom, her family in the outer room. No mermaid powers had manifested since she'd woken up, so when she transformed and fell on the floor, it was a real shock. Well, actually, she didn't exactly transform—her clothes vanished and she got scales, but her legs stayed separate. It looked like she was wearing a scaly scuba suit, complete with foot flippers. It was the weirdest thing Kim had ever seen.

"Kim? Are you all right in there?" Her Dad's voice came through the door.

"Fine," Kim called.

"It sounded like something fell over. Do you need any help, darling?" That was Mum. Kim was still not used to hearing her voice—and since she was apparently trying not to be here at the same time as Dad or Cleo, Kim hadn't gotten used to it.

"No, I told you, I'm fine!" The door started to open anyway. Before Kim could smack it shut, Cleo stuck her head inside. She darted inside in Kim's moment of shock and shut the door, staring at Kim's legs. She looked as freaked out as Kim felt.

"I don't get it," Kim whispered, as Cleo finally snapped out of it and started drying her off. "I tried five times to turn yesterday and nothing happened, and now this?"

"What happened when you went in the Moon Pool?" Cleo was being very careful not to touch anything wet. Kim considered flicking her, but decided the bathroom was too small for two mermaids (or one and a half). Cleo was giving her an intense glare. "Kim, tell me."

"The moon turned red. Does that normally happen?"

Cleo's eyebrows shot up. "No, I've never seen anything like that."

"Oh good!" Kim was a little too loud, and wondered for a second if Mum and Dad had heard. They were talking in low voices outside. Kim caught the word "boyfriend," and winced.

Cleo had a thoughtful frown. "Lewis mentioned a lunar eclipse last full moon, but I saw a lunar eclipse, it turned the moon black, not red—plus that took away our powers for twelve hours."

"Twelve hours?" Kim furrowed her brow. "I went in the Moon Pool at…ten, maybe eleven…what time was it when Emma pulled me out?"

Cleo shrugged a little. "Ten-thirty to eleven, I guess?"

"And it's only nine in the morning now. I tried to turn myself yesterday afternoon…oh!" Kim smacked her forehead. "Twelve hours!"

With a whooshing sound, Kim's scales vanished, leaving her in her hospital pajamas. Her canula was back, too; the nubbins tickled her nose. Cleo helped her up, but as they turned towards the door, Dad's voice broke in.

"The doctors said she's not out of danger yet, and you're leaving now?"

Mum's voice was a frantic whisper. Cleo and Kim exchanged bewildered looks. Grabbing a glass from beside the sink, Kim held it to the door and pressed her ear to it. Cleo opened her mouth to object on instinct, then shook her head. She moved back and pretended she wasn't interested in eavesdropping.

"…job interview today; she's up and about, you can phone me if there are any changes."

"Oh, sure, a job interview or looking after your hospitalized daughter."

"The doctors here can do a lot better than my 'hot towels.'" Mum sounded bitter. "Haven't you noticed how much your girls hate it when I play nurse?" Kim flinched. There was a rustle of cloth. "I've got to go; Wallace is picking me up any minute."

"_Your_ girls? You divorced them, too? Is that why you've never had them over for even a day visit? Or is 'Wallace' keeping you too busy?"

Cleo pushed Kim aside, unlocked the door and stepped out. Kim followed a second later, and saw her parents looking red-faced and embarrassed. With a muttered goodbye, her Mum grabbed her purse and headed out, letting the door swing shut behind her.

"…How much of that did you hear?" Dad asked, looking sheepish.

"A lot," Cleo said. Mr. Sertori's shoulders slumped, and he sighed. He held out his arms, and the two joined him in a group hug.

"I'm sorry. I lost my temper. Your Mum's really busy lately, trying to find a job and so on. This has been stressful for everyone."

"Wish I'd picked a better time to almost drown," Kim muttered.

"It's not your fault, sweetheart, don't go blaming yourself." Mr. Sertori ended the hug, and wandered to the window. Behind his back, Cleo made eye contact with Kim and put a finger to her lips. _Don't tell anyone about the tail thing._ Kim nodded. Nobody except Karl, when he showed up. If he showed up.

oYo

Karl finally came to visit a few days later, when Kim was sitting up in bed, watching TV. It was some sci-fi show; Kim was only watching because nothing else was on, though the guy doing most of the running around was pretty cute. She almost turned it off as he walked in, but Karl waved a hand.

"Don't bother. It'll make it harder for anyone to hear us." Karl seemed a little different now. He moved crisply and spoke in a blunt tone, no niceties anymore. Sitting, he remained tense, as if coiled to strike. Kim wasn't sure she liked the look in his eye. He looked just a teensy bit…obsessed, maybe? This whole mermaid thing had been turning him from a gruff, slow old guy into a hunter.

"Oh, right." Kim was doing much better, and most of the medical paraphernalia was gone, except for the IV in her right arm. "What do we do now? I can't control when I turn or even how much, and there is no way I'm going back in that Pool again."

"You don't have to." Kim frowned a little, puzzled. Karl grinned. "I brought cameras to Mako—I was going to try capturing the mermaids on film without them knowing—and I turned one on when I saw you coming. We've got footage of two transformations and their powers."

"Yes!" Kim clapped her hands over her mouth as she realized how loudly she'd shouted. Fortunately, nobody outside the room seemed to notice. After a moment, she relaxed, and turned up the TV volume for good measure. "What do we do with it now?"

"Find somewhere to present it. We could use the internet, just post it on YouTube, but there's no way of proving it isn't just a clever hoax." Karl hesitated, as if there was something he wasn't sure he wanted to say, shook his head, and went on. "I know there was a marine biologist who seemed unusually interested in Mako last year. I've looked into her work; she's brilliant."

"She was kind of creepy," Kim said, frowning doubtfully. "I dunno if we can trust her—and I don't want to be experimented on. Or dissected."

"Don't worry, I think can keep her under control." Karl's wry smile made Kim feel a little better. He checked his watch. "I think that's as long as I can be here without arousing suspicion. Don't tell anyone what we've talked about."

"Wait!" Karl paused, rising out of the chair. Kim threw out her arms. "When do I get to see the tape?"

Karl hesitated. "I'm…not sure that would be a good idea. Seeing yourself almost die might be traumatic."

"I'm a big girl, Karl," Kim said, with a scoffing laugh.

"Have you ever seen someone die?" That made Kim pause. "Then you aren't ready." Without so much as a goodbye, Karl left the room.

Kim flopped back on the bed. She started flipping channels, bored, and found the one with all the schedules. Cop show, cop show, sports, sports, sports—wait. H2O: Just Add Water? She rolled her eyes. Sounded like a nerdy science show. But familiar, too.

Then the screen fizzled, and when it cleared, the slot was empty. Kim frowned. She started flipping to that channel, but when she reached it, was met by nothing but white noise. Huh. Kim switched the TV off and on again, and briefly glimpsed what looked like Rikki's face. Rikki was a TV actress now? Then Kim remembered the last time a piece of technology had acted up for no reason: that spell mentioning the mermaid coven. Something very weird was going on here.

Kim eventually found a nature documentary to watch, and settled back on the bed. She didn't have anything to worry about; Karl was taking care of everything. So long as that Denman woman could be trusted. The others had seemed pretty creeped out by her.

oYo

Dr. Denman snuck in while my back was turned. I don't know if she'll actually get all the way inside this story yet, we'll see.


	14. Chapter 14: Melusines and Melodrama

Disclaimer: Don't own H2O.

oYo

Kim had been home from the hospital for two days when The Inevitable Meeting took place. Cleo mentioned something to her about it before school, but Kim hadn't been paying attention. Her mermaid form only ever popped up between about 10:45 pm and am, which meant breakfast dishes were hotly disputed.

Rikki, Emma and Lewis came in as Kim was watching TV, pretending her homework didn't exist. They came in and sat down in the living room, exchanging quiet glances. Emma stayed about a meter away from everyone else. Lewis in particular seemed fidgety. His backpack was full of books; it clunked as he slid it off.

"Turn around," Rikki ordered. "We need to talk."

Kim sighed, and turned off the TV. She twisted around in her seat, propping her arms up on the back of her chair. Cleo finally joined them, sitting near Lewis—where else?

Emma cleared her throat. "Okay, just to make sure we've got this right, you went into the Moon Pool during an eclipse, and the moon turned red. You came home, went to bed, and the next day you turned into a normal mermaid twice—but changed back twelve hours after going into the pool. Since then you only turn during those twelve hours, and you get two tails."

"Yep, pretty much." Kim rested her chin on her forearms. "Got anything?" This was directed at Lewis. He took his cue, rising and unzipping his backpack.

"That's because you're not a mermaid—at least, not like the others." He pulled out a book, and flipped quickly through it. "You are a Melusine, occasionally known as a nixie." With a flourish, he held up the book, showing a medieval illustration of a woman with two tails in a bathtub. Kim leaned forward and took it, then passed it to Rikki.

"So you're the Starbucks mermaid. Okay," Rikki said, passing the book on to Cleo. "What about the twelve-hour powers thing?"

"Ah, well, according to one version of the legend, the original Melusine only transformed on Saturdays. I presume this means it's a regular but non-constant transformation. The mythology's pretty inconsistent, I'll want to do some studies," Lewis said, as the book continued around the room.

That reminded Kim of Karl, and Dr. Denman. How long before she showed up? And then what? Should she tell the others?

"Okay, what do we do about it?" Emma asked, shutting the book with a snap and holding it out.

Lewis took it, and shrugged. "Nothing, really. Not much we could do, in any case."

"What about powers?" Cleo asked, looking up.

"Powers?" Kim asked, frowning.

"Guess we can take that as a 'no,'" Rikki said.

Kim sat up straight. "What are you guys talking about?"

"This." Cleo raised a hand, looking towards the sink.

The faucet turned on, and as Kim looked, a snake of water looped down out of the tap. It came up and twisted towards them, rippling a little. Kim's jaw dropped.

Turning, Emma gestured at the tentacle. It froze solid, clouding up the faucet. Rikki didn't even look, she just curled her fingers, palm flat, and the tentacle melted, dropping into the sink before evaporating into a cloud of steam.

"I knew it. I knew it!" Kim cried, grinning. Then she paused, and her face fell. "So why don't I get powers?"

Lewis muttered something about inconclusive research.

"You might just be delayed," Cleo put in. "Rikki's took a while to show up, and so did Charlotte's."

"Aha, Charlotte _was_ a mermaid!"

"And so were Mrs. Chatham, Charlotte's grandmother, and another old lady," Rikki said.

"Julia Dove?" That startled Rikki, and Kim smirked. "I've talked to Miss Chatham."

"If there's nothing else to be done, I'll be leaving," Emma said, rising. She didn't seem angry anymore; she moved slowly, as if she was reluctant to leave.

"Do you have to go?" Cleo asked.

"Yeah. I've got my shift at the Juice Bar pretty soon."

"Want any help?" Rikki said, uncharacteristically sincere. "Since you said Wilfred needs some."

"No, I can handle it." Emma slipped out, shutting the door very quietly.

As the mermaid club sat silently, the phone rang.

"I'll get it!" Kim shouted, springing out of her seat and running to the phone. She picked up and headed away from the group. "Hello, Kim Sertori speaking."

"It's Karl. Come to my house when you can."

"She's here?"

"Not yet. Dr. Denman wants proof before coming back—she's under the impression that the mermaids lost their powers last time."

"Okay. Be right over." Kim hung up, and went to the door, getting her coat and gloves.

Cleo had heard, and she leaned over as Kim headed for the door. "Be right over where?"

Kim ignored her and slammed the door after herself. The walk to Karl's house was quick, now that she knew the way. She glowered down at the street, stomping on any bugs she saw. The mermaids had powers, and she didn't? That wasn't fair! All that work, and she was a freak fish-thing with a name that sounded like a brand of cough syrup. All her guilt about bringing Dr. Denman back flew out the window. She couldn't wait to see the looks on their faces when the scientist showed up. With any luck she'd get to watch the scientist do some experiments on them.

A few times Kim thought she was being followed, but when she looked, nobody was there. The wind started to pick up, tasting of snow, and the sky clouded over. It was definitely winter now; Kim shivered, wishing she'd remembered her hat. Her ears were freezing. If she just had Rikki's power . . . Kim kicked a loose can out of her path.

The gate and front door were unlocked, so she just headed inside. Karl sat in the living room, surrounded by pieces of old, musty paper and shiny black technology; cameras, maybe. A laptop sat open on the coffee table. The entire room smelled musty and old from the yellowy documents.

Karl glanced up as Kim walked inside. "I'll need samples of hair, saliva and a toenail, plus a video of your transformation. Here." He held out three test tubes, which Kim took with a grimace.

She sat down, and Karl left. His footsteps echoed away, as if he was going up or down a flight of stairs, and a distant door slammed.

Kim spat into the first tube, corked it, and paused. How was she supposed to get hair or nail samples? She started digging through the mess for clippers. Karl must have them around, he was prepared like that.

Pushing aside an ancient-looking map, Kim found a DVD in a clear plastic case. "Transform Standard" was written on the back. Picking it up, Kim turned it in her hands. This had to be the tape of Emma rescuing her.

Kim listened. She couldn't even hear Karl's footsteps: the house was pretty big. She slipped over to the laptop, and popped the disc into the drive. Just one look. He'd see she wasn't a wimp. It took a little fiddling to get the disc to play, but Kim managed. She sat back, brushing aside crackly paper.

The first shot was a gradual pan across the beach of Mako Island. It was a bright, sunny morning, birds singing, waves crashing on the shore. Abruptly, it zoomed on the water, just in time to catch a mermaid fluke disappearing into the water. A knot tightened in Kim's stomach, and her pulse sped up.

The next few minutes dragged on as if they were hours. Kim eyed the counter running in the corner of the screen. At 10:54:15, there was a splash. Emma's head popped up, along with Kim's. The camera followed as Emma swam to shore, holding Kim's head above water.

"Cleo! Rikki!" Emma yelled, as she drew closer to shore.

There were distant shouts, and the camera swung abruptly towards the woods. Kim saw Lewis, Rikki and Cleo clambering down a rock formation. They must have gotten close enough to see, because Cleo looked up and went absolutely white.

"Kim!" She charged down the rocks and down the beach, just as Emma dragged the unconscious Kim to shore.

The camera focused on the mermaid, but Kim still glimpsed herself. The knot in her gut turned into ice. She was very pale, lips blue, limp as a jellyfish. The camera settled onto a fallen log, and Karl leaped over it to run to the beach. Emma bit back a scream as he appeared, and twisting around, dove back into the water.

"OhmyGodohmyGodohmyGod_Kim_!" Cleo dropped down beside Kim and seized her shoulders, shaking her.

Lewis shouted something, tried to pull her away, but Cleo ripped out of his grip. She transformed with a flash, but didn't even seem to notice. Lewis, on the other hand, was visibly terrified of Karl. Rikki stopped up short, staring at the old man.

"Got to get her breathing again," Karl said, pulling Kim further up and tilting her head back. He started giving her CPR.

The conscious Kim was frozen. She didn't even think about the old man's bristly five o'clock shadow or the first kiss implications: she just stared at Cleo.

Her big sister, who treated Kim like the bane of her existence, was almost in hysterics. Lewis and Rikki together could barely keep her far enough back for Karl to work, both trying to reason with her. She managed to sneak a hand out and grab one of Kim's; it looked white and tiny in her grip.

Kim didn't dare blink. Her head was starting to buzz. Only when the video version of her choked and began coughing up water did she exhale. Cleo made a sound between a sob, a hiccup and a giggle, and the others let go of her. She caught the recovering Kim by the shoulders and hugged her. Now Kim remembered that muddled, awful part between passing out and the hospital—crushed to Cleo's scale-covered chest, sick, barely conscious and freezing.

Nobody said anything; they just let Cleo rock Kim as she wheezed. They all looked shaken, even Karl. Rikki and Lewis risked nervous glances at him, the latter grimacing as he looked away. He clearly wasn't looking forward to an explanation. As Kim's breathing grew normal, Karl spoke up again, pulling off his jacket

"We need to warm her up, gradually."

The quasi-mermaid's eyes slid shut as he wrapped the fabric around her. Cleo finally let Karl take Kim—who looked like a toddler in his arms—and start carrying her away.

Sitting on Karl's sofa, chest so tight she could barely breathe, stomach doing flip-flops, Kim realized two things:

One, she was crying.

Two, Karl stood in the doorway, watching her.

Kim sat up, and opened the disc drive. Standing, she held the DVD up, grasped it with both hands, and snapped it in two. Then she did it again. And again. Dropping the bits on the floor, she dusted off her shaking hands.

"It's over," she said, voice shaking. "I'm sorry, I-I can't do this anymore."

Karl sighed, and walked inside. Kim backed up, grabbing the test tube she'd spat into and holding it behind her back. The old man crouched and scooped up the bits of silvery plastic.

"If that's how it has to be." He rose. "Very noble gesture, I imagine you think you're protecting your sister and her friends from me. Stop looking it as a betrayal. This is about science, not revenge."

"I don't care."

"Either way, that was futile. I have multiple backups of all of my information, and have already sent copies to Dr. Denman. She'll be here on Tuesday, whether or not I can send her physical samples; as it turns out, the tape was more than enough. Tell the others, if you want, it's of no concern to me."

Kim felt like she would be sick. Karl dumped the bits of plastic into the trash, and faced Kim again. When he spoke, it was almost kindly.

"We aren't going to hurt any of you if we don't have to. This is all for the greater good. The world deserves to know that magic and mermaids are real, that the so-called quacks and nutcases were telling the truth."

A smile crossed Karl's face. Kim recognized it with a queasy feeling: it was the same smug, triumphant grin she'd worn every time she'd screwed with the mermaids, the one that came when she was in control.

Kim was shaking like a leaf, blood pounding in her ears. The vial was slippery in her clammy, sweaty hands, and she squeezed it tighter. The large, crystal doorknob pressed against her back as she bumped up against the door. Grabbing it, she yanked the door open and bolted.

oYo

Trivia: I didn't know about Melusine before late last week, when I started looking up legged mermaids and found one with two tails. The reason I'm not using the nixie name is because it's also the name of a different, Germanic type of mermaid-shapeshifter-water spirit.

And thank you so much, Fan; bad characterization is my biggest pet peeve in fanfiction, I'm glad I've avoided it so far!


	15. Chapter 15: Debrief and Recover

Disclaimer: I don't own the show or its characters.

oYo

Running, head down, Kim rammed right into someone, and they both stumbled. A pair of hands caught her by the shoulders, steadying her. Kim, still hiccuping with sobs, looked up.

"Why the hurry—what's wrong, child?" Miss Chatham asked, surprised at the sight of Kim's tear-streaked face. Kim just stared at her for a minute.

"Mermaids—Dr. Denman—Karl—it's all my fault!" Kim broke down again. Miss Chatham hugged her, right there in the middle of the street. The older woman smelled like the sea. "It's all right, it's all right. Come with me. I'll help you sort all of this out." Kim just nodded.

The walk to the retirement village was, thankfully, a short one. Hardly anyone was out in the cold winter weather, and the few adults who noticed them waved. Kim guessed they thought Miss Chatham was her grandmother or something. The retirement village itself was a plastically perfect little set of houses, all identical and surrounded by unnaturally bright green grass. Still, Miss Chatham's house stood out—Kim could hear the wind chimes a mile away.

There were all kinds of little sea-based decorations around the pale green house. Giant shells lining the front steps, chimes made of sea glass, and a hanging made out of a starfish and other oceany bits on the front door. Miss Chatham let Kim in first, closing the door behind them.

"Sit down," she said, gesturing to a sofa in the front. "Would you like something hot to drink?"

"Sure, whatever," Kim mumbled. Her crying had given her the mother of all headaches, and now that she'd calmed down, she felt completely drained. Miss Chatham moved into the kitchen, divided only by a partition. Sitting back, Kim sighed.

"Did the mermaid club tell you anything?" That sentence surprised Miss Chatham a bit; she looked over the partition at Kim. The younger girl cracked a wry, mirthless grin. "Okay. Well, I figured them out—again—and I…started trying to turn into a mermaid. Didn't work for ages, but then I looked up Julia Dove and Karl, and I found out he's still around here, so I went to see him."

"Karl?" Alarm flashed across Miss Chatham's face, quickly replaced by controlled calm. "Is that where you were just now?"

"Yeah." Kim folded her arms, looking down at her lap. "He helped me figure out the Moon Pool, so I went, but something weird happened with the eclipse, and now I'm a melasomething. Lewis knows what it is. Like a freaky sort-of mermaid. Karl knows about all three of the mermaids and me, he filmed some transformations and took pictures and stuff, and he's bringing this Dr. Denman here to help him investigate."

"You helped him?" Miss Chatham asked.

Kim gulped. "Y-yeah—but I don't want to anymore. He's gotten obsessive now, and Dr. Denman gave me the creeps."

"Rightfully so. The last time she was here, she took Lewis hostage on her boat and kidnapped the mermaids to study them," Miss Chatham said. Face burning, Kim wished the floor would just open up and swallow her. With a swish of fabric, Miss Chatham was beside her, sitting down and pressing a steaming mug into her hands. She put a hand on Kim's shoulder.

"I didn't know," Kim managed in a tight voice, trying not to cry again. The feeling started coming back into her numbed fingers.

"Of course not, how could you have? The girls kept the secret well, and Denman didn't expose them after she thought they lost their powers." The older woman grew serious. "If she's coming back, we will need to be ready. I'll call the others."

Kim sniffled. "Cleo's going to kill me."

"Not if I have anything to say about it." Miss Chatham's firm tone made Kim feel better. Rising, Miss Chatham crossed the room and picked up the phone. As she dialed, Kim took a sip of the drink, hoping it wasn't some kind of tea. It turned out to be hot chocolate; maybe it was just the stress, but Kim thought it was the best hot chocolate she'd ever tasted.

"Hello, is this Lewis? It's Louise Chatham." Miss Chatham wandered out of the room as she spoke. Kim didn't really listen, since most of it was what she'd just talked about, plus long pauses that were probably Lewis explaining his side to her. Suddenly very tired, Kim finished the hot chocolate, and set the mug on an end table. There was a TV guide there, and Kim started flipping through it to distract herself.

"I see. We should all meet to discuss this," Miss Chatham said. Kim's eye happened to fall upon something in the guide. H2O: Just Add Water, the Movie. And the summary…three ordinary girls turned into mermaids? Again?

Kim felt a jolt of static electricity, and dropped the booklet with a yelp. To her bewilderment, the TV guide started smoking. Alarmed, she kicked it away, and it landed in the kitchen, where it burst into flames. Miss Chatham saw it. Moving quickly, she grabbed a pitcher of water from the counter and dashed out the fire. She looked back at Kim, phone still pressed to her ear.

"No, everything's all right," she said. "I'll see you then. Goodbye." Hanging up, she bent down and picked up the limp, blackened TV guide.

"I-I didn't do that," Kim said. Miss Chatham threw it away, and dropped a towel onto the spill. Kim got a bit shrill. "It's not a mermaid power, it started even before I got the tails—spells that mention Rikki, Cleo and Emma, Rikki on TV, something called H2O—I barely have enough time to read them before they explode or fizz out. Am I going crazy?"

"I doubt it," Miss Chatham said. Kim wasn't sure whether to yell at her or hug her for being so insanely calm, but she relaxed a little. "But this is an interesting development. Have you mentioned it to the others?"

"No."

"I think you should," Miss Chatham said, throwing the wet, soot-stained towel into a hamper. "It may be useful."

oYo

"I'm almost starting to miss you two arguing," Mr. Sertori joked. Kim didn't look up, just kept eating. Two thirds of her dinner gone, only a little more to go. She poked the limp green beans with her fork. Cleo was the same, completely silent, but eating faster. Their Dad's smile faded. "Girls, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," Kim said. Cleo just shrugged.

Mr. Sertori sighed a little. He set down his fork. "When are you two going to believe me? If there's something wrong, you can just tell me. Honest."

For a split second, Kim wanted to say "Okay," get up and dump water over herself and Cleo. Then she remembered that she wouldn't turn until later anyway.

"We know, Dad," Cleo said, giving him an encouraging smile. "School has just been kind of rough lately, that's all." Kim nodded. It wasn't even entirely a lie; she'd just been hit over the head by a pop quiz. With a rueful smile, Mr. Sertori nodded.

"I remember those days." It looked for a second like he would launch into some anecdote of his childhood, when the phone rang. With a mutter, he pushed his chair out and left to answer it.

"Why don't we just tell him?" Kim whispered. Cleo's eyebrows shot up.

"Tell him? We can't," she retorted.

"Why not? He's Dad, he's not going to throw us out for being freaks!"

"No, he'll be terrified of what might happen if anyone else found out and lock us up somewhere 'safe' for the rest of our lives. Or do you never want to go on a date in your life, ever?" Cleo asked.

Kim shuddered. "Oh, good point." With a final nod, Cleo finished up, gathered her dishes, and dumped them in the sink. Kim twiddled her fork in her mashed potatoes, half-listening as Dad argued with one of his fishermen over something. For a minute, everything almost seemed normal again.

"…Again? I thought Dr. Denman had finished her research." Kim froze. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Cleo stop up short on the stairs. Had Lewis told her yet? He had to—Cleo was always the first one Lewis called about anything. "New project, right. Okay, I'll tell the boys to give Mako a good wide berth again. How much research can you do in one place anyway?" Mr. Sertori chuckled. "Yeah. G'night."

He hung up and returned to the table. As he sat down, he paused, frowning at Kim. "Kim? You all right?"

"Yeah," Kim managed, after a moment. She smiled weakly. "I think I'm done, though." Gathering her dishes, she scraped the rest of her plate into the garbage and dumped the dishes in the sink. They clattered on Cleo's.

"Cleo!" Mr. Sertori called towards the stairs. "Don't forget the dishes this time!"

"I won't!" Cleo called back, her voice muffled. Kim correctly translated that into "Kim will do them after you've gone to the den," and wandered off to kill time until then. She didn't really feel like homework tonight. Pausing in the living room, she glanced at the TV. No, Dad would notice that. Quietly, she headed upstairs.

Opening her door, Kim was surprised to see Cleo standing in her bedroom. She'd found the paper with Kim's guesses about the mermaid club, and almost put it behind her back as Kim came in. Changing her mind at the last second, she folded it up and set it on a shelf. The younger Sertori shut the door behind herself.

"What are you doing in here?" Kim demanded.

"Now you know what it feels like," Cleo replied with a little smirk, but she quickly grew serious. "Lewis told me everything." She didn't seem mad, that was a relief. Not making eye contact, Kim crossed the room and sat on her bed. Cleo followed suit, crossing her legs and facing her younger sister.

"I…is Dr. Denman really that bad? Karl said he could keep her under control or something," Kim said. "He's pretty intense, I think he could do it." She fiddled with her necklace—well, one of Cleo's. Her sister didn't seem to have noticed yet.

"That bad and worse, and I really doubt anyone could 'keep her under control.' She is super manipulative. Zane's Dad couldn't handle her last year," Cleo replied. That got Kim's attention.

"The _Bennetts_ were in on this? How are you guys still a secret?"

Cleo nodded. "Zane helped us escape—he knows we didn't lose our powers, but Mr. Bennett still thinks we're normal girls now. Point is, you know what Zane's Dad is like. Dr. Denman walked all over him, he walked out of the deal and that still didn't stop her."

"There wasn't anything I could do—Karl didn't listen to me when I told him I didn't like her," Kim said hastily. "And even when I broke his disc he wouldn't budge."

"You what?"

Kim hesitated. Cleo gave her a scrutinizing look. Drawing in a deep breath, Kim tried to think of how to say it.

"Karl kind of…filmed the whole me-almost-drowning thing, plus all the mermaid stuff with you and Emma. I found it, and…" Kim gestured as if she was breaking something in half, and shrugged helplessly. "He'd already made backups and sent one to Dr. Denman." Cleo looked like she'd been punched in the stomach. Kim's voice trembled a little when she spoke again. "A-and thanks, by the way."

Cleo turned away, breathing very fast, looking scared and embarrassed.

"That's what's bringing Dr. Denman back? Us—me—freaking out over you?" Kim nodded. Cleo dropped back on the bed, grabbed a throw pillow, and put it over her face and screamed as loud as she could into the pillow. Kim winced at the muffled shriek. This. Was. Bad.

oYo

Trivia: According to Wikipedia, the first few episodes of H2O were compiled into a TV movie that aired on June 8, 2007; this is what Kim nearly stumbled upon.


	16. Chapter 16: Delaying the Inevitable

Disclaimer: Don't own the characters or show.

oYo

Lying in bed, watching rain pelt the windows, Kim finally realized just how much of a problem this whole mermaid thing might be. Well, on the bright side, maybe Cleo already had a way to deal with this. Then she realized that it was Tuesday. Dr. Denman arrived today. Kim's feet got very cold under the covers, and she shivered. What was the plan again? Just try to avoid her?

Kim was going to be late for school. She rolled out of bed. This wouldn't be that hard. She was good at getting out of stuff she didn't want to do. An expert. Grabbing the outfit she'd picked out the night before, Kim headed for the bathroom. Cleo was already in the hall. A sudden grin lighting up Kim's face, she sped into a run, skidding into the bathroom seconds ahead of Cleo and slamming the door.

"Kim!" Cleo's annoyance felt so good, one normal thing in all of this crazy. Without thinking, Kim stuck her hand under the faucet to check the temperature, and all the normal went away. She slipped and banged her chin on the edge of the bathtub, jarring her teeth. With an annoyed growl, Kim pulled herself into the tub. From now on, baths and showers at night, before the Melusine thing kicked back in. Her tails both were about half a meter too long for the bath, and they stuck out at the foot.

Looking down at her tails, Kim wondered why she'd turned into a normal-looking mermaid the first two times. Was it just the first twelve hours? That was weird. And why didn't she get any powers? Now she was a freak even compared to the other freaks. Kim tried to remember what one tail had felt like.

Better get started on the whole bath thing. Grabbing the soap, Kim started scrubbing. As she did, still thinking about her first tail, a funny feeling began to prickle down Kim's body. Her tails felt…like they were being zipped together, top to bottom, very slowly. The bones and other inside stuff were molding like clay: it felt so weird Kim almost thought it should hurt, but it didn't.

She pulled herself up out of the water to look. Sure enough, her tails split into two further down than they had—and they were melding together. The scales ran and solidified further and further down before Kim's wide eyes. In a few seconds, she had a single, normal mermaid tail. Kim felt electrified, the hairs on her arms all standing on end, heart pounding.

"…What!?" Mind racing, Kim tried to think about the separate tails again. Was this a mermaid power? It felt pretty powerful. She couldn't focus. The tail didn't change.

"Kim?" That was Cleo. "Something wrong?"

"Ummm…"

"Kim?"

Tell Cleo? What if it was just a crazy fluke? (Pun unintended.) Kim flopped her tail, making the water slosh in the tub.

"N-not now?" Kim replied. Her voice was higher than she wanted, and she coughed. "I'm fine." She got back to scrubbing. Oh well, at least she didn't have as much tail to soap up. It was stiffer and heavier than her Melusine tails, but she managed. At least the rain was stopping, she noted, glancing out the window.

oYo

The hall was packed with kids, the chattering and clanging of lockers almost deafening. Kim was just shutting her locker when she heard a woman's voice.

"Kimberly Sertori?" Kim turned around, and froze.

The young blonde woman smiled at her, and extended a hand. "Linda Denman, Karl's told me everything about you." Kim didn't shake her hand. She wanted to run, but her feet felt glued to the spot—plus there wasn't enough room in the packed hall.

"Well, this is going better than I expected. Walk with me? I don't think either of us wants to discuss your scaly little problem here," Denman went on. She was still smiling, but the intent look in her eyes made Kim feel like a mouse being eyed by a hungry snake.

"I-I really can't, I've got—homework!" Kim pulled on her backpack; it rustled on cue. She wasn't lying about the homework. "Some other time?"

"Oh, come now, we're on the verge of a major scientific breakthrough. Surely your homework can wait?" The look got harder. Kim wasn't going to be able to talk her way out of this. She panicked.

"Nope!" Kim whirled and dove into the crowd. Mistake—she was jostled and bumped around, and the other teens complained loudly as she pushed through. Someone's papers scattered in the air, and Kim slipped on a loose sheet. She scraped both hands on the spackled grey floor, scrambling up as quickly as she could. A slim hand caught her upper arm in a firm grip, pulling her up.

"Well, that was immature and pointless," Dr. Denman said, still sounding as pleasant as ever.

"I don't want to go with you! I don't know you!" Kim yelled. That drew a few strange looks from the kids passing by. She tugged dramatically against Dr. Denman's grip. "Let go of me! Help!"

"Oh, please," Dr. Denman began, rolling her eyes, but Kim interrupted her with a loud scream. She could already see an adult pushing through the students, and started "struggling" even harder. Dr. Denman let go of her, looking flabbergasted, and Kim ran for the teacher. It turned out to be Mr. Wilson: she recognized his Hawaiian shirt from the end of the hall. Despite the fact that he smelled like sweat, she seized him in a hug, giving Dr. Denman a fearful look.

"She won't leave me alone—she says my Dad sent her to pick me up from school, but I've never seen her before!"

"You're kidding me," Dr. Denman said, staring at Kim incredulously. Mr. Wilson gave Kim a smack on the back, probably intended as a comforting pat, and strode forward. Kim let go, hiding behind his arm and still giving Dr. Denman terrified puppy eyes.

"Can you please come with me, miss?" He asked, in a tone that made it clear this was no request. Dr Denman drew in a slow breath. Her expression was very controlled.

"Fine." She went with Mr. Wilson, and Kim gave her a wicked grin behind the teacher's back. Denman ignored it, though she moved with an angry snap to her step. With a sinking feeling, Kim realized that this obstacle wasn't going to last very long. She headed back to her locker.

oYo

"Kim! It's that Karl guy!" Mr. Sertori yelled, holding the phone. It was late afternoon; Cleo was still out, probably with Lewis, and Kim was giving this whole homework thing another shot. It took her mind off Denman and Karl's plotting, at least.

"I don't want to talk to him!" Kim yelled down the stairs.

"What?"

"I just don't! Okay?"

She heard Dad's footsteps coming up the stairs, and shook her head. So much for homework. Flipping her book shut, she looked up as Dad pushed her bedroom door open. He didn't have the phone anymore.

"What about your assignment? I thought you liked talking to Karl."

Kim thought fast. "I already finished it—he won't stop calling me, he just wants to talk about the old days and motorcycles and when he was my age."

"He's all alone. Maybe you should try listening," Mr. Sertori replied.

"Not…like that. He scares me," Kim said, deciding to add a little bit of truth to spice things up. "I think he's got Old Timer's and thinks he's a teenager again sometimes, he starts acting really weird."

"Alzheimer's," her dad corrected. Now he looked a bit concerned. "Why didn't you say anything about it before?"

"I didn't think it was important. I thought, the assignment's over, he'll leave me alone, but no!" Kim threw up her hands.

"It might not be as bad as you think. He's probably very lonely, alone in that big house. Tell you what, we'll both go over tomorrow evening and straighten this out." Kim gave him an alarmed look. "If there is really something wrong with him, we should make sure and try to help him get professional help."

"He's a creeper," Kim muttered, clinging to the last snippets of her lie.

"That's why I'm going to be there. I'll call him back and tell him," Mr. Sertori said. He came over and gave Kim a side hug. His cologne didn't cover up the smell of fish. "It's not going to be that bad, trust me."

He left, closing the door behind himself. Kim looked despondently at it.

"Wanna bet?" She asked nobody. Glancing back at her homework, she shoved it off the bed. So much for distracting herself.

She heard the door slam, and knew Cleo was home. With a groan, Kim decided she had to tell her. Who knows, maybe she'd have some ideas on ways to get out of the meeting. Dad said hi or something, probably asking about school. From Cleo's voice it had gone pretty well.

Kim came out just as Cleo was heading into her room. Her older sister had that doofy smile she got after hanging around Lewis for too long. "Hang on a minute."

Cleo stopped, and turned. "What?"

"Dad's going to make me go to Karl's house tomorrow." Cleo's smile vanished.

"He knows—"

"No, but I don't think it'll be long if Karl gets his way," Kim replied, folding her arms. "What do we do? Fake I'm sick and can't go? Run away?"

"You could get stuck in detention," Cleo said, frowning in thought. Kim made a face, and Cleo shook her head. "Do you really think Dad's go for the sick routine?"

"It worked for you guys last time. Plus Karl's old, old people are easier to get sick, Dad might let me stay home."

"Yeah, and we almost ended up in a special hospital because Emma's doctor thought we had some rare tropical disease."

"So tone it down. It's the middle of winter, everyone's getting sick, he'll buy it."

Kim tapped her mouth with a finger. "Knowing Dad he'd probably just pack a box of tissues and make you go anyway. Plus we'd need to bring Rikki or Emma over to fake it right; my powers don't really work for the sick routine."

That reminded Kim of her own possible new powers. She made a note to keep trying them out, make sure of them before she talked to anybody.

"Detention would be best. You're a pretty lousy student—"

"Hey!"

"—Dad won't be able to get you out of it. Besides, all you have to do is skip your homework again or something."

Kim sighed. She had a point. "And I was just getting started on it anyway." Cleo went into her room, closing the door behind her. Kim almost went back into her own room, but then remembered that she was skipping her homework. Would that be enough? Maybe she should throw in something disrespectful, just to be sure. That would be fun.

Kim headed to the bathroom. Give the powers thing another shot. She shut the door, poured a glass of water, and sat down on the floor. The whole falling down thing was pretty annoying. Sticking one finger in the glass, she counted to ten, and transformed again. Yep, two tails, fins flattened against the bathtub. The floor was cold even through the scales.

Kim raised her hand, like she'd seen the other girls do, and focused on her tails. She wasn't sure exactly what she was doing, and wondered if she should have asked. So she just tried imagining the single tail again.

For ten long minutes, nothing happened. Then, Kim felt that familiar prickle near her waist. Starting to breathe faster, she watched as her tails began joining again. Instinctively, she moved her hand with the change: the merged scales followed her gesture. This time it only took a few seconds for her to get the normal tail.

Without even thinking, Kim brought her hand back up for balance. To her surprise, the scales continued up her body, right up to the bra-thing over her chest. She froze. That...was different. So it was more than just mermaid form: she could get even more fishy. A little freaked out, definitely excited, Kim giggled.

oYo


	17. Chapter 17: Confrontations, Sort Of

Author's Note: This is the last Friday before November, so I'm afraid this fic goes on hiatus for about a month. I'll be back when NaNoWriMo concludes.

Disclaimer: I own nothing I have previously disclaimed.

oYo

Kim walked inside and stomped a little, trying to get rid of the snow clinging to her body. She was very grateful she was only a part-time mermaid: she could already feel it melting down her boots and making her hair damp.

"Good, you're home," Dad's voice rang out from the kitchen. He walked in, grinning. "You've probably gotten all your homework done at detention, let's go to Karl's. I've already called him; he's expecting us any minute."

"But Dad—"

"What is so bad about this man, Kim?" Wildly, Kim thought about saying he'd tried to molest her or something—but knowing Dad he'd probably freak, call the police and try to get Karl arrested, and that might just make things worse. Mr. Sertori headed out to the car, and slowly, Kim followed. It was still snowing lightly, not as cold as it looked.

Being winter, it was already dark out, street lamps making yellow spots against the falling snow. Dad whistled the whole drive up. He stayed on tune most of the time, but those high notes squeaked badly. When they pulled up in front of Karl's house, there was another car already parked there.

"He's got someone else here, maybe we should come back tomorrow," Kim said, pointing to it.

"Funny. He didn't mention anyone else being here when we came. Maybe it's his car," Mr. Sertori said, with a shrug. He got out, and Kim followed. She knew the car belonged to Dr. Denman. Time for the Spanish Inquisition. Why couldn't she have gotten a power like one of the normal mermaids? She could have frozen the engine, or superheated it, or just made the gas start leaking.

"Kim!" She realized she was dawdling, and hurried to catch up with Dad. Maybe they'd be less dangerous if he was with her…? Probably not. At least she was basically a normal girl until later tonight. They couldn't just dump water on her and expose her like the others.

Sure enough, Dr. Denman was sitting on Karl's couch as they came in. She gave Kim a bright smile, rising as the two pulled off their winter coats. Karl was already standing, and he went over to help them.

"Hello. I just dropped in a few minutes ago, I'm Linda Denman," Dr. Denman said, coming over to shake hands with Mr. Sertori. "Karl said he'd been expecting visitors, I hope I'm not imposing."

"Not at all," Dad replied. "This shouldn't take long."

"Indeed." Dr. Denman's smile didn't falter. Kim shivered. At Karl's gesture, everyone went and sat on the sofa, and he took a chair.

"I think the time for secrecy is over," Karl said, resting his right foot on his left knee and leaning back in his chair. Kim froze. "Mr. Sertori, your daughter has been helping me investigate the peculiarities of Mako Island. It appears that something about one of its internal pools causes a…unique reaction in an occupant at certain times."

"Molecular transmutation on a massive scale," Dr. Denman put in. "I've been studying it for some time. In fact, given the right circumstances, it can turn a human into…what I can only call a mermaid."

"What?" Mr. Sertori jumped bolt upright as if he'd sat on a tack. He looked from one adult to the other. Now what? Kim started thinking, fast.

"I'm afraid we don't yet have a scientific name for the creature. I have seen several myself, Mr. Sertori," Karl said, leaning forward and fixing him with a serious look. "I have film footage."

Dr. Denman cut in. "Do I look like a bigfoot enthusiast or alien hunter? I am a scientist. I would never have believed it unless I had empirical proof, which I do."

"Your daughter, a very clever girl, brought them to my attention—I used to be quite an enthusiast fifty years ago—and during the investigations, managed to actually become one."

Mr. Sertori stared at Karl as if he was insane. That gave Kim her idea, but Karl reached under his jacket and pulled out a little…was that a cassette recorder? Yikes, he really was old. He turned it on.

"Kim, I've been trying to get ahold of you since yesterday," the recording was in Karl's voice. Then Kim's interrupted.

"Karl, I went to the Moon Pool and it worked! The water got all funny and the moon turned red and now I'm a mermaid! We did it!" Mr. Sertori gave Kim an incredulous look. She mirrored it. Dr. Denman just watched them both.

"It worked?"

"Yeah!"

"…I've been trying to call to tell you not to go; I was worried what the lunar eclipse might do to the pool."

"Lunar eclipse?"

"The moon turning red."

"Oh. Well, I guess you had nothing to worry about." Kim couldn't help sounding a bit teasing.

"I'm already at Mako Island; meet me there," Karl said. "I'll be on the northernmost beach—the same one you came in by last night, if these tracks are yours. Don't be seen, especially by the mermaids, and be cautious as you come—they may have noticed me."

"Sure, I'll be there in five seconds!" He turned off the tape recorder with a click.

"…You recorded that call? That's illegal!" Kim exclaimed. "I-it was just a joke!" She didn't know what to do with her hands, so she clasped them in her lap. "Look, I thought it'd be fun to play along with you and your mermaid kick, but when you got all serious I wanted to stay away. I didn't even tell Dad, since you were embarrassed by it fifty million years ago or something. I'm sorry, really, but that was stupid. This? This is going waaaay too far."

"Then how do you explain the fact that you dove into the water behind your house, but were picked up at Mako Island less than half an hour later?" Karl replied, quirking an eyebrow.

Kim threw up her hands. "I don't know, I was kind of unconscious at the time!"

"Okay, that's enough!" Mr. Sertori bellowed. He looked at the two other adults in disbelief. "I can't believe you dragged my daughter into a crazy monster hunt." Kim smirked a little, but he gave her a hard look. "You're not out of this either, young lady. You should never have played along or lied to me. Consider yourself grounded for the next two weeks."

"Mr. Sertori—" Karl began, but Kim's Dad was already standing.

"I'm sorry to take up your time like this. Kim," he looked back to her. She got up, her victorious mood soured by the grounding, and they got their coats. Kim happened to glance at a mirror while she and her Dad got their coats on, and saw the two mermaid hunters give each other serious looks. Uh-oh.

oYo

It was a bright Saturday morning, and Kim decided it was finally time to reveal her power to the others. Cleo was with Lewis in the living room. Coming down the stairs, Kim noticed that they were unusually close to each other, even for them.

"Cleo! Lewis!" They both jumped, and scrambled away from each other. Cleo gave her an evil glare, to which Kim grinned. "I wanted to show you guys; I think I've found out what my power is."

"Really?" Lewis's disappointment turned into curiosity. Kim skipped into the kitchen, squirted water on her wrist, and ran back into the living room. She managed to flop on the couch as the ten seconds ran out.

"I don't think I will ever get used to those," Cleo said, shaking her head.

"You don't have to. Look." Kim raised her hand. This time, it only took a few seconds for her to start combining her tails. Cleo and Lewis's eyes bugged out. "Basically, if I imagine something scaly happening to me, it happens."

"C-can you do this in human form?" Lewis asked.

Kim frowned. "I haven't tried."

"This is amazing—how much can you change?"

"I don't know. Up to here, so far." She drew her hand up to her chest, covering her abdomen with scales.

"What about going the other way? Could you make yourself turn human?" Lewis was getting that SCIENCE!1 look again. Kim shrugged, and looked down at her fluke. She focused on it, and gradually, her flukes separated and thickened. Soon she had a tail ending in two feet. It looked bizarre.

"Sixteen seconds," Lewis said, checking his watch.

"So…you don't have to worry about turning into a mermaid at bad times _at all_?" Cleo sounded kind of jealous. Kim turned them back into a fluke again, her face falling with realization.

"No, if I make myself turn back this way I'll be naked." She flopped back on the couch, and her tails separated again.

"I'd like to keep testing this power," Lewis said.

"Is that a good idea with Dr. Denman breathing down our necks?" Cleo replied. "I think we should avoid the tails as much as we can until she leaves."

"Good point." Lewis sat down beside Cleo, and grabbing a blanket, Kim started drying herself off. Lewis glanced sideways at Cleo. "You could help."

Cleo rolled her eyes. "Then I'd get wet and we'd have two mermaids in the living room. Help her yourself." Kim stuck out her tongue, and her sister mirrored it.

"No, I mean just draw the water off her with your powers."

"…Oh." Cleo raised a hand. Water droplets began rising from Kim's body, coalescing into a little ball in midair. Making an intent face, Cleo kept it up, making the water fly faster. After almost a minute of this, Kim transformed back into a human, and Cleo threw the water into the sink. "I…never thought of doing it that way before."

"Never? You've been a mermaid for how long?" Kim asked.

"Shut up, it's not exactly obvious—or easy!" Cleo retorted. At that point, Rikki slammed the door open and came inside, tracking snow into the living room.

"Dr. Denman's taken over Mako."

"What?" Cleo sprang to her feet. Lewis went to get the door, and Rikki shook snow off her boots.

"I went out for a swim and almost got netted. Her yacht's out there now, and there are other boats patrolling all around the island. Knowing her there are probably underwater cameras everywhere." She glanced over at Kim. "By the way, great job getting them off our tails, Kimmie."

"It wasn't my fault!" Rikki just rolled her eyes.

Cleo started to pace, folding her arms. "Emma knows?"

"I just came from her place. Of course, she's just about ready for that world tour, so it won't be her problem for much longer."

"Dad's not going to let her or Karl near us," Kim said, getting up. "You and Emma have to get your parents good and scared of her too."

"Kim, there are a lot of noises coming out of your mouth, you may want to have something done about that," Rikki said.

Kim glowered. "I'm a mermaid—"

"Melusine," Lewis corrected.

"—just like the rest of you, I have a say in this!"

"She has a point," Lewis said. "But it'd be risky to get too many people really scared of Denman. She might go and expose you anyway—she does still have video evidence."

"We should do something about that," Rikki said. "Lewis, you're good with computers—"

"Oh no," Lewis began, but Cleo jumped in.

"All you have to do is get into their files and delete everything about us."

"How?" Lewis demanded. "Dr. Denman didn't buy it the _second_ time; she just used me as a hostage!"

"So go to Karl. He doesn't know you," Kim replied.

Lewis shook his head. "Dr. Denman's got to have told him about me by now."

"Then you'll have to sneak in. We have got to get rid of those files," Rikki said. Lewis looked from one mermaid to the other. He groaned.

oYo

Trivia: I picked the scene divider because I like this "o-Letter-o" style, and well, the letter "Y" kind of looks like an upside-down tail.

To Whom It May Concern: This fic will return on December 7th, and be updated every Friday as before until its completion.

charlotte bird: No, I am not a mermaid; the closest I'd ever get is if I actually managed to make one of those YouTube shows or something like that. Also, Emma's leaving because that's what she does between Seasons 2 and 3 (though I may take an AU turn and change that).

Star Light: Thank you, and you won't have to wait for much longer!


	18. Chapter 18: Another Dastardly Attempt

Disclaimer: I don't own H2O, its characters or its mythology.

oYo

Kim was woken up by Cleo letting out a very loud "WHAT?" in her room. With a yelp, Kim bolted upright and looked around. Her room looked grey in the early morning light; it was snowing outside. Checking her clock, Kim saw that it was six-thirty. On a Saturday morning. She flopped back in bed with a groan, promising to get Cleo back for that, when her door slammed open.

"Kim, get up," Cleo said. She was still in her pajamas, her hair in a messy slept-in braid.

"Go away," Kim moaned, rolling over. Cleo yanked the pillow out from under Kim's head and smacked her with it. "Stop it!"

"You were the one who wanted to be involved in the mermaid stuff, so get up and be involved."

Kim groaned and sat up. "What is it?"

"Rikki's missing."

Kim blinked. "Missing?"

"Rikki's Dad just called me. He thought she was staying over with me or Emma last night when she didn't get home. Nobody's seen her since yesterday afternoon, when she was over here."

"Denman and Karl," Kim said, getting up. It was cold, and she shivered, grabbing a fleece jacket. Had Dad woken up yet? Didn't sound like it.

"Has to be." Cleo sighed and started to pace around the room. She almost kicked over a pile of homework.

"Then we call the police and report a kidnapping, Denman gets arrested, easy."

"And risk them seeing Rikki as a mermaid? I don't think so."

Kim hopped back on the bed. "Then…she's got boiling powers, right? Can't she tell Denman and her goons to let her go or she'll cook them?" Cleo gave her a horrified look. "Just _threaten_! And maybe dehydrate them a little if they say no—they'd buy it! What, you never thought of trying to scare them? You're—we're—basically superheroes!"

"Right," Cleo said, still visibly creeped out. She pulled her cellphone out of her pocket. "I'm calling Lewis. He said he'd be trying to hack her computer."

"Lewis, Lewis, Lewis," Kim grumbled, flopping back on the bed. It was still warm, and she resisted the urge to snuggle back up and go to sleep again. Cleo ignored her, turning away as she waited for him to pick up.

"Yeah, Lewis, made any progress?" She asked, starting to play with her hair. There was a long silence. Kim went to the closet and started digging through her clothes. Then she glanced back at Cleo. She was busy. Kim slunk out of the room into Cleo's, and then to the bathroom with a teal top she'd been eyeing for weeks.

One shower later, she returned to find Cleo standing in the hall, cell in hand. She didn't as much as notice that Kim was wearing her clothes.

"Lewis has been able to get into her main computer, he's messed up her videos, and he knows where Rikki is. He's trying to figure out whether she's sent any copies anywhere else," she reported.

"That was fast," Kim said, after a moment.

Cleo rolled her eyes. "He's been up all night working on this."

"Whatever. What do we do now?"

Before Cleo could answer, there was a thump on the door downstairs. Cleo moved towards it, remembered she was in her pajamas, and looked to Kim.

"That'll be Lewis. You answer him while I get dressed," she said, starting for her room. There was another thump, weirdly soft.

"He's seen you in pajamas before," Kim protested, but Cleo shoved her towards the stairs. With a groan, Kim slouched down the stairs and opened the door.

"I hope you've got a good plan," she was saying, and then she paused. Nobody was there.

Then a snowball smacked into Kim's face before she could even finish her sentence. She staggered back, snow falling down her front, and swiped it out of her face. Emma's brother Elliot came up the walk, grinning. More chunks of snow slid down the front of the door.

"Elliot! What are you doing here?"

"Emma sent me with a message—she's still on no-phone privileges after what happened last month," Elliot said, brushing snow off his coat as he came inside. For a moment, Kim didn't know what he was talking about. Oh, yeah, moonstruck. That must have been good. "I didn't know you were going to open the door before I threw that last one."

"Whatever," grumbled Kim. She swiped at her face. Her wet face.

Oh snap.

Kim tried to run, but it was already too late. With the familiar burst of magic, she sprouted her two tails and sat down with a thump. Elliot froze, half-in, half-out of the doorway, halfway through a sentence. A cold breeze blew in past him, and Kim shivered.

"Shut the door!" She snapped. Elliot obeyed, still staring at her tails. Kim sighed and began scooting towards the couch. "Remember that time I thought Rikki and Cleo and Emma and some other people were mermaids?"

"Y—" Elliot squeaked, coughed and tried again. "Yes?"

"Well, turns out Rikki, Cleo and Emma actually are mermaids. There's a magic pool on Mako that does it. I tried, but something went kind of wrong, and…" she gestured to her two tails, and pulled herself up on the couch. "Are you going to keep gaping for a while or deliver that message?"

"Huh?" Then Elliot shook his head and dropped onto a couch. "Oh, yeah. Emma said some doctor guy called her parents and asked to come over and talk to Emma, and they said yes."

"Dr. Denman's a woman," Kim corrected him. She growled in exasperation, trying to scrub her tails dry. "Great, just great!"

"…I-is Lewis a mermaid too?"

"No, stupid, he's normal, and if he wasn't, he'd be a merman, remember?" Kim retorted, throwing the wet towel at Elliot. He fumbled and threw it aside. "Do you have any powers?"

Kim's annoyance faded a little. "Yeah, watch." She raised a hand, and webs grew between her fingers, scales running down her arm. Elliot's eyes bugged out of his head. On a whim, Kim added claws, and watched her fingernails thicken and curve. She flexed them, then made a swipe at Elliot. He jumped, and she laughed, letting her arm change back.

"So, what's wrong with Dr. Denman?" Elliot asked. Kim sighed.

oYo

Cleo finally came down as Lewis arrived, and Kim finished up her explanation. She'd already turned back into a human, and as the two older teens came in, Kim pointed to Elliot and said, "He knows everything. He threw a snowball at me and I wasn't quick enough. I'm not sorry. Also Denman's going after Emma next."

"I won't tell anyone, promise," Elliot added.

From the look of it, the only sleep Lewis had gotten was draped over his keyboard: there were still red marks on his face, and his hair was flattened on one side. He shrugged and flopped down on the couch. With a studying glance at Elliot, Cleo sat next to Lewis.

"I've fixed all of Denman's videos," Lewis mumbled, "Scrambled her equipment, and found Rikki. She's in the Moon Pool—Denman gated it up again, a lot better than last time. No way I could pull it off like last time."

"How do we get in?" Cleo asked. Lewis rested his head in one hand and shrugged. "Denman's coming to Emma's house, right?" Elliot nodded. "Phone privileges or not, I'm calling Emma." She pulled out her phone and dialed, then held it to her ear.

Kim looked back at her hands. She willed scales to appear on her hand, and after a moment they did, spreading rapidly down her arm. Her pinkie and ring finger merged together into one. Kim was briefly grossed out, seeing her bones move under her skin. It didn't hurt; it just felt weird and tight, like trying a new stretch for the first time.

"Lewis?"

"Bwuh?" He looked up, running his hand down his face.

"I can use my powers dry." She waved her hand at him.

"Oh."

"Answering machine," Cleo said, hanging up her phone. "This is really bad, guys."

"Understatement. Of. The. Year," Kim replied, fixing her hand. Then she remembered, and sat up straight. "Guys, something else has been happening."

"Huh?" Elliot looked at her.

"I keep seeing…I'm not sure what; I think it's called H2O: Just Add Water, a TV show or a movie or something. It was on some spells that mentioned you and the other mermaids, and something on TV, but every time I paid attention it vanished or blew up. That's what ruined the computer," Kim said.

Everyone looked to Lewis. He frowned, trying to think, and finally shook his head. "No, I haven't got a clue. Sounds bizarre."

"…H2O?" Elliot asked. "Now that I think about it…I think I saw something about that on TV. Something with Zane, but then the channel went to static. I thought it was just a news story or something."

"That's exactly what happened to me!" Kim exclaimed. "But I saw Rikki."

"Nope, still dunno what that is," Lewis said, sitting up straight. "We can deal with that later. Right now we need to worry about Denman and Kaaa—hi Mr. Sertori!"

"You're here early," Kim's Dad said in Lewis's general direction, as he walked into the living room. He was in a bathrobe and slippers, carrying a cup of coffee. He glanced toward Elliot, and his eyebrows shot up. "Elliot Gilbert, was it?"

"Yeah, Emma sent me over."

"Haven't seen you around here much." He cast a furtive glance at Kim, who rolled her eyes and gave him a faint shake of the head. _No, he's not my boyfriend._ Mr. Sertori relaxed a little.

There was a knock on the door, three sharp raps. All of the teenagers exchanged looks, and Mr. Sertori set his coffee aside and went to get it, muttering about the time and the weekend. Opening the door, he looked the strange man up and down. Kim, facing the doorway, studied him, wondering if he worked for Denman. He didn't look like a scientist or an evil minion.

"Donald Sertori?" He asked.

"That's me. Who are you and what do you want at this ungodly hour?" Kim's Dad folded his arms.

"I'm Vincent Ross, I'm working with a local marine biology research team," he said. Yep, working for Denman. Everyone looked at each other expectantly for a plan. Nobody had one. "May I come in? There's something rather important I need to discuss with you and your family."

"Important how?" Mr. Sertori didn't budge.

"Important as in the cusp of a major scientific discovery," Ross replied.

"Wait—does this have anything to do with that Doctor Denman? Because she's out of her mind," Kim's Dad said, backing up and glaring suspiciously at Ross. In answer, Ross reached into his coat and pulled out a thick envelope, handing it to Mr. Sertori.

"I am working for Dr. Denman, but I won't push you. I'll just ask you to look these over on your own time. If you change your mind, our address is on the envelope," Ross said. "Good morning."

"Right, bye," Mr. Sertori said, stepping back into the house and opening the envelope. Ross turned and left, and Mr. Sertori absently shoved the door shut after him.

"That's probably just junk," Cleo said, as her Dad came back in. She got up. "Here, I'll throw it away for you."

"Not so fast." Grinning, Mr. Sertori sat down in an armchair. "This should be fun: what could these nutters have to try to convince me to help them?" He pulled out a couple of photos, and stopped. His brow furrowed.

Kim was closer, and she scooted up to him, leaning over his shoulder. It was a photo of Rikki, Cleo and Emma swimming in mermaid form. Thinking fast, Kim snorted.

"Faaake!" She sang, plucking the photo out of his hands. "I mean, look, you can see the zippers!" She pointed to a shadowy ridge on one of the girls' tails. "But why'd they 'shop your face on here, Cleo?" She held out the photo, and Cleo came over to look. She still looked nervous, but she was playing along.

"And these," Mr. Sertori went on, flipping through the other photos.

"Gimme." Kim reached for them, but he held them away.

"Wait five seconds, Kim!" She'd already seen one: Rikki in the Moon Pool, glaring sourly at the camera. Cleo had seen it too: she went pale.

"It's pretty convincing," Mr. Sertori went on, looking more closely at the photos. "But why would they put you and your friends as mermaids?"

"I dunno," Cleo managed, shaking her head. "It's creepy, though."

"I'm going home," Elliot said, getting up with an attempt at nonchalance. "Just going to…check on things," he said. Fortunately for his bad acting, Mr. Sertori was more interested in the photos.

"Say hi to your Mum and Dad for me," he said, not looking up.

"Sure."

oYo

The reason Elliot found out here was because the 100th reviewer, Chortling Mermaid, suggested it. Thank you all so much, I never expected this to take off like it has!


	19. Chapter 19: Turn Loose the Mermaids

Disclaimer: I don't own everything I disclaimed last time. The title is taken from a Nightwish song which happens to be rather awesome, although it has nothing to do with what's going on here.

oYo

"We're going to need to go in after Rikki and Emma eventually," Lewis said, in a low voice. Mr. Sertori was downstairs, watching TV, and the teens were upstairs on the pretense of homework. A call from Elliot had confirmed that Dr. Denman had taken Emma, on the pretense of needing her knowledge of Mako Island.

Lewis pulled out a printed-out map of Mako Island, with all of Dr. Denman's technology included. "Even if they haven't figured out what I did—and knowing how paranoid they are, they probably have—we don't have a lot of time. The girls will be in the Moon Pool, with the new gate and a patrolling boat here." He pointed to blobs of white on the paper. "Here's my idea. We both attack; I shut everything I can down, you create a storm. Rikki and Emma will help out once they figure out what's going on."

"What if someone gets hurt?" Cleo asked.

"There's hardly anyone out there with Denman and Kyle, and they're all experienced enough to handle a storm. A storm plus escaping mermaids, not so much," he added.

"Cool," Kim said, grinning. "What do I do?"

"Stay here," Lewis said. Kim pouted. "You're the least experienced and your powers won't be much help here."

"I wanna help." Kim folded her arms.

"What is wrong with you?" Cleo snapped. "This isn't a game!"

"I know, lighten up, will you?"

"Lighten up? Are you kidding me?" Cleo's voice was shrill and getting loud. Lewis tried to shush her, but she kept going. "A crazy scientist is hunting us down one by one so she can experiment on us or dissect us, and you think I need to _lighten up?!"_

"Technically it's vivisect if you're not dead-" Lewis began, and she whirled on him.

"Oh, thanks a lot!"

"What's going on up there?" Mr. Sertori called.

"Nothing!" Everyone yelled in unintentional chorus.

"You're not coming. Period," Cleo said in a low, hard voice. Kim drooped.

oYo

Kim stood in the backyard, in half-melted snow, looking out towards Mako Island. Cleo had been gone for half an hour. Lewis had gone back to his house, and Kim was going crazy, with nothing to do but wonder how the rescue mission was going. If they didn't get back before eight, she was going after them.

Seven. Seven-thirty. Seven forty-five. Seven fifty-nine. Kim called Lewis on Cleo's cellphone, but got an answering machine every time. Finally, her watch read 8:00. She headed back inside and thudded up the stairs.

"I'm going to bed now!" Kim called. Dad didn't reply. After several minutes, Kim tiptoed back down the stairs and out the back door. Winter air stabbed at her face and ears and hands, but she headed all the way down to the water. She couldn't pop a tail yet, but she could basically make one by sprouting scales. Pausing, she grimaced at the shiny black water, remembering the last time she'd had to do something like this. Then she focused on scales growing under her clothes.

It wasn't nearly as bad as that stupid mermaid spell; the scales were pretty warm. Halfway through, Kim thought she looked like blue scaly lady she'd seen in some superhero movie. On a whim, she tried turning her scales that color, and it worked. Grinning, she sat down on the edge of the water, and hissed at the cold. Her legs molded together into a tail almost before she thought of it, and in she went.

Kim swam until she could see lights above the water—a few little ones, not the glow from the mainland. Then she stopped, and surfaced, looking towards Mako Island. A few electric lights shone through the jungle, and a boat cruised around the island in circles. The sky was still very storm-free.

Kim dove and swam closer, keeping half an eye on that patrolling boat. It was very dark underwater, but she stayed as far down as she could make herself. However, as she neared the reef, she glimpsed something black coming towards her. Kim recoiled, only to be blinded by an underwater flashlight. It was a scuba diver. With something that looked like a gun.

Whirling, Kim started super-swimming away, but collided with a rock. Dizzy, she backed up, and felt a sharp prick in her mid-back. Fumbling, she pulled out a dart, and let it drop into the water. She was already starting to feel pins and needles from the spot she'd been hit. Worse yet, her scales were starting to disappear.

Spandex-clad arms wrapped around her chest, but Kim smacked the swimmer hard with her tail, and super-swam. She slanted up so as not to hit anything, and was soon blinded by a spotlight. The prickly feeling spread and she started having trouble controlling her tail. Engine rumbling, the boat caught up to her.

Before Kim even knew what was happening, a thick net slammed into her, twisting around her tail. She struggled, but between the dart and the net, couldn't get free. The net swung up, out of the water, dripping. Dizzy and nauseous, Kim squinted at the boat as she was set down in it. She didn't recognize the people there.

One man darted forward and started prodding her with cold fingers. Kim swatted his hand away, but he ignored it.

"The tranquilizer's kicking in," he called over his shoulder. He started untangling the net, and Kim recoiled. Patches of skin showed through her once-blue scales, and the cold set in with them. More people came to help, and as they got Kim free, one pulled off her coat and wrapped it around the melusine.

Kim never actually passed out, but everything got fuzzy and weird, and she couldn't move her arms or legs—vaguely, she knew her tail was gone. Someone was carrying her; each step jolted her a little. She half-wished she'd throw up on whoever-it-was, serve them right. Someone dressed Kim, then the boat engine went quiet, and she got carried some more. All the voices started to blur together.

She picked out Cleo's voice, though: it was a lot higher and louder than anyone else's. Kim tried to say something to make her stop freaking out, but it came out garbled and weird. Probably had something to do with how she couldn't feel her face anymore. Opening her eyes, she tried to blink away the blurriness. It looked like the Moon Pool, only with a lot more bright lights and machines and stuff. The three mermaids were in the water.

Denman was talking. Her voice made Kim want to throw up. Something about Lewis and hacking and jail and helping everyone by just cooperating and the greater good and science and more dumb stuff Kim didn't understand.

"Shuddup," Kim groaned. The scientist didn't react, so she said it again, louder, and glared in Denman's general direction. She was probably the white smudge with the yellow smudge on top. Since the scientist still didn't pay attention, Kim kept gabbling. She didn't even know what she was saying, but she made it good and loud, trying to drown out Denman. Spit kept flying, and she realized she might have been drooling.

Then someone dark sat Kim up, and put a hand over her mouth. Karl crouched down at her level and glared at her.

"Be quiet."

"Make me, you stupid jerk," Kim slurred into his hand. She swung an arm at him, and her hand bounced off his face like a noodle. For some reason this struck her as funny, and she started giggling uncontrollably.

"Well, at least we know how this stuff works on mermaids," Karl said, and let go of Kim. She flopped over, hitting her head with a thunk. She was on a flat piece of plastic, like a tabletop or something. Her face rested on her arm, dangling over the edge. She squinted at her fingers, and they twitched. The nails began to lengthen into claws, and coppery scales formed on her skin. Not even looking, Kim started doing it to her other arm, so they'd match.

Slowly, the feeling began to come back. It started in Kim's fingers and toes, and worked its way up. Not entirely sure what she was doing, Kim kept up the scaly thing. The scientists noticed, of course, and came back over, babbling at each other. Annoyed and still woozy, Kim swatted one of them—but this time her claws cut his face. He backed off, and people started trying to hold Kim down. She didn't like that.

The scientists had her pinned by her arms and legs. With an evil giggle, Kim grew a separate tail and cracked one woman across the shoulders, knocking her down. Her clothes were starting to rip as she got too big for them. Everything was shifting around inside now—as Kim got more lucid, she got less human. Even her head shifted, eyes slanting and jaw stretching, her ears sliding back and up as her hair vanished.

Finally, she was big enough to just throw everyone off. Rolling onto her stomach, Kim grinned at them, and they recoiled. Someone screamed. Even though she was still confused, queasy and headachey, Kim liked where this was going. She faked a lunge at the nearest person, and he scrambled back with a screech.

Dropping off the table—it was a short fall—Kim turned on the scientists. They were getting smaller as she looked, and so was the cave. She was definitely drooling, but then her jaw and mouth felt really different now, like her lips were basically gone.

"You guys sorry yet?" Was what she wanted to say, but what came out instead was a roar. Denman's goons fled, and Kim turned on Denman and Karl. The scientist just stood there, gaping up at her like an idiot. Karl was digging around in one of the big boxes.

A wind picked up, and Kim glanced towards the Moon Pool. The mermaids were making their superpower gestures, and faintly, Kim heard a rumble of thunder. And a clatter as Karl got whatever-it-was he was after. Turning, Kim saw him raise what looked like a really big gun with a spear in it. Dr. Denman yelled something at him, sounding scared, but the wind was getting louder. Some of the smaller tools got snatched up and carried right out of the cave.

Karl leveled the gun-thing at Kim, and she recoiled, but she was right up against the wall already. Dr. Denman ran up to him and tried to force the thing out of his hands, and for a minute, Kim thought she was trying to help. Then the scientist aimed the weapon at the mermaids.

"Stop it right now!" She yelled. Kim roared again and lunged, knocking Denman flat. Lights exploded all around the cave, showering Kim in sparks. Planting one hand on the gun, Kim accidentally crushed it flat. Woah. She looked down at it, pulling her hand away. She hadn't realized she was that strong. Cool.

Karl ran, fighting through the wind, and only just reached the tunnel before Kim hooked her tail around him and dragged him back. Lightning flashed, lighting up the now-dark cave. Realizing just how much bigger her hands had gotten, the melusine picked up Denman in one and Karl in the other. Her fingers (well, claws) just fit around their waists.

"What do we do with them?" She tried to ask the others, but it came out as a rumble. The mermaids seemed to understand, though, and after exchanging looks, focused the storm on the two humans. Kim let go, and they were snatched up and out of the cave like leaves in a storm, accompanied by all of their equipment.

"…Okay," Rikki said at last, as the wind died down a little inside, "How do we get out? There's a gate over the entrance." Kim already knew the answer to that. She shrank down until she was just a little bigger than the mermaids, and dove into the pool. The mermaids moved aside, and Kim swam down the tunnel.

Soon, she bumped nose-first into a metal grille. Getting her arms forward, Kim gripped the bars and pushed. Something popped, and she pushed again. Creaking and groaning, the gate twisted. Kim tore the metal through and swam out, peeling off the remainders. The three mermaids came out after her, and burst into super-swims. Kim followed, though she realized a second later that she was doing a weird wriggly snake move instead of normal mermaid swimming.

As she went, Kim slid back into mermaid form. The tranquilized feeling was almost gone, but her stomach somersaulted and her head pounded like an overexcited toddler with a drum. Swallowing bile, she just focused on following the other three.

Finally, they reached a beach, and pulled up onto the sand. Behind them, a storm rumbled over Mako. Coming up out of the surf behind the other three, Kim felt a rush of heat in her mouth, did an abrupt about-face, and threw up in the water. It felt like it went on forever, but at last she got to dry heaves. Shaking, feeling a little bit better, Kim crawled up the beach and flopped down. She couldn't concentrate, so she just went back to melusine form.

"Are you okay?" Cleo had lost her tail now, and she came up beside Kim. She just groaned.

"Kim can turn into a dragon. Suddenly I really miss Charlotte," Rikki said. Kim just gave her a death glare.

"Come on," Emma said, getting up. "We need to go make sure Denman's goons didn't get to Lewis." Cleo followed her, as did Rikki.

"I'm going to bed," Kim replied, crawling back to the water.

"Aw, too bad keep in touch bye-bye," Rikki replied, in a fake-regretful voice. Ignoring her, Kim slipped back into the water.

oYo

Kim's transformation is based on what melusines tend to do in legends when they're discovered.


	20. Chapter 20: Wait, We're Done? Really?

Disclaimer: I do not own the show or its characters.

oYo

Kim sat in the class, doodling in her notebook. Glancing down, she realized she'd drawn an awful lot of mermaids, and shrugged it off. Not like anyone was going to think she was one just because of doodles. Still…she turned the page. She'd also written a very fancy "H2O" a couple of times. It had been almost a week, and there had been no exploding computers, no glitchy TV shows, and no weird mermaid references. Miss Chatham had said something about Max looking into it, but that had been a while ago.

The teacher was just saying something about homework assignments. Catching the phrase "test," Kim woke herself up to scribble some vague studying notes to decode later. The kids around her started waking up—except for the nerds, of course, who were fascinated the entire time.

He finished, and as he took his seat again, the bell rang. In a flurry of activity, the class packed up and flooded into the hallway, where other students were already clustering around the lockers. Hearing someone call her name, Kim looked around to see Elliot hurrying towards her. Well, might as well talk to him; most of her friends seemed to be out sick or hurrying to ballet or something.

"Emma told me about what you guys did on Mako—did you really turn into—" Kim put a hand over his mouth.

"Not so loud, everyone can hear you!" She growled, nodding towards the kids pushing past them.

"Oh. Right. Um...did you? Really?"

"Yeah." Kim opened her locker and put her books away.

"And you really picked them up and..." Elliot mimed throwing something.

"Yep."

"Wicked! I wish I could do that."

"It's not as fun as it sounds." Kim shuddered, remembering how weird and wrong it had felt after she changed back.

"Could you scare Billy for me?"

"What?" Kim shut her locker with a clang and stared at him.

"Billy, Nate's brother? He kicked me off the soccer team," Elliot said.

"Aren't you going out of the country or something? And isn't it off-season anyway?"

"Not for a couple of weeks. He told me to turn in my stuff now, and Nate said to shove off when I told him."

Kim thought a minute. Slowly, she grinned.

oYo

It was a cloudy, warm day, and the snow was melting into the grass, making a muddy sludge. Kim was incredibly glad water couldn't turn her in the afternoons. Crossing the field outside the soccer pitch, she ducked into a patch of trees. Elliot waited for her.

"Billy's coming?" Kim asked, stepping over a sludgy puddle.

"It's almost three. Anytime now." Elliot couldn't stop grinning.

"You're sure he won't recognize your handwriting?"

"Positive. Look!" Elliot pointed. Kim looked, and saw Billy and Nate heading for the soccer pitch. They were looking around, frowning a little. Kim giggled wickedly, and crept for the shed nearby. If Nate and Billy heard the door, they didn't react. She could hear their voices as she scaled up, undressing quickly and piling her clothes on a shelf. As she started to shapeshift, she slipped back outside.

"Who would put a note in your locker, anyway?" Nate was saying.

"I dunno. You think it was a prank?" Billy asked. Kim curled her tail around her legs like a cat, keeping her back to the shed wall. Letting out a giggle that sounded weirdly rumbly, she crouched down on all fours. Her claws squelched in the mud.

"Did you hear that?" Billy sounded nervous.

"What?"

"That growly noise."

"Probably just a generator or something," Nate said. "Eh, nobody's here. Let's go." Kim decided she was big enough, and walked around the shed. The two boys were walking away, and she snorted to get their attention. Her breath clouded the cold air. Billy looked over his shoulder. His eyes went wide, his face turned white, and he caught Nate by the arm.

"N—Na," he stammered, pointing to Kim.

"What?" Nate looked down, and then back. His jaw dropped. Rearing up, Kim roared as loudly as she could at them. She was sure the ground trembled. Nate sat down hard (right in a mud puddle, no less). Billy screamed and bolted, and Kim darted after him. She bumped Nate as she past, knocking him flat, and gave Billy a gentle nudge. He skidded and landed facefirst in a patch of muddy snow.

Turning, Kim could see Elliot apparently in a seizure, curled up and trying to laugh silently in the woods. She laughed too, but it still sounded dragony, and Billy started crying and babbling. That was a little weird. Kim turned and headed back to the shed. Nate was getting up, so she flipped his feet out from under him with her tail. She was already shrinking as she got back to the shed. They couldn't see her change back, and she had to be fast.

Kim didn't have anything to worry about. As she got small enough to fit through the shed door, she heard the brothers run away, screaming about dragons and monsters. It took her a few minutes to finish transforming back. A wave of nausea swept over her, and she caught herself on the wall. It faded after a moment, but she still felt sick. Heading back to the trees, she found Elliot starting to turn blue, he was laughing so hard.

"Thanks," he managed to gasp. "Wish—had—camera."

"Except for the part where people would go nuts and start hunting dragons," Kim retorted. Elliot got control of himself, rose and dusted himself off. His pants and coat were splotched with mud. His Mom was probably going to be mad at him. "You owe me for this, remember."

"Yeah, thanks," he said again, and stifled a hiccupy giggle. "What do you think they're going to do now?"

Kim shrugged. "I need to go home and lie down." She made a face and put a hand on her stomach.

"Okay." Elliot finally sobered up. "By the way, you make an awesome dragon."

"Thanks." Kim started back across the soccer pitch. As she went, she noticed a few large, muddy tracks in the ground. Pausing beside one, she held her hand over it, fingers splayed. Her hand looked tiny inside it. Rising, Kim rubbed the print out with one boot. Evidence would be a bad thing.

oYo

Kim was in Cleo's room when Dad got home from work. Specifically, in Cleo's fish tank. She didn't actually want anything from Cleo's room (for once), but she'd had a brilliant idea. If she could grow into a dragon, why not shrink down and turn into a fish? It had worked, though she'd ended up flopping on the carpet inside a mound of clothes the first time she tried it, and it took her longer than the dragon thing just because she kept getting stuff wrong, like the fins or the eyes. It was actually kind of cool in here, though Cleo's other fish wouldn't leave her alone.

The door opened, and Cleo came inside. Kim quickly ducked behind a lump of coral. She didn't want to give away her new idea. Her sister seemed enormous now, kind of freaky even. She pulled on her rubber gloves and started feeding the fish.

A new idea struck Kim, and she snuck out. Ignoring the flakes of fish food (it looked even more gross down here), she swam up to Cleo's glove and bit the fingertip. The rubber tasted weird, and Kim didn't have much by way of teeth, but she kept worrying at it.

"What?" The hand shot up, and Kim only just let go before she got pulled out of the tank. She ducked behind a lump of coral. Cleo grabbed her net, and began trying to snag Kim. She managed to avoid her sister's grabs for a minute. Unlike in mermaid form, she couldn't hold her breath for very long. At the last possible second, she surfaced and took a gulp of air, only to be scooped up in a green mesh.

Cleo squinted at her, frowning. "How did you get in there?" She asked. Right, all she could see was a new fish. Deciding the cat was out of the bag, Kim jumped out of the net onto the carpet. She transformed as she went, hitting the floor as a mini-mermaid. Cleo let out a startled yelp, clapping her hands over her mouth. Her gloved, wet hands.

"Oh no," she moaned, as her tail appeared and she fell down.

"How do fish hold their breath so long?" Kim panted.

"They breathe underwater, mostly," Cleo replied, sitting up. She scooted over to her bed, grabbed the blanket, and began rubbing her tail dry. Kim grabbed her clothes and started dressing herself again. Cleo gave Kim a hard look. "Nate and Billy came into the JuiceNet babbling about dragons earlier today."

"Really?" Kim acted casual. "Weird."

"Don't play dumb. Elliot told Emma what happened."

"Did anyone believe them? I don't think we have anything to worry about," Kim said, sitting up and putting her socks on.

"Kim, we have to be careful. We're just lucky none of Denman's goons are talking about what they saw. If Karl or Denman turn up, we could be in big trouble," Cleo said.

"But they haven't," Kim said. "And why would they? I could just threaten to eat them if they try anything else."

"Kim!" Cleo looked horrified.

Kim decided to change the subject. "Where's Lewis?"

"Still on Mako, picking up what's left of Denman's gear." Cleo relaxed a little. "I don't think we're going to be seeing much of him for a long time. Get the hairdryer, will you?"

"I'm not your slave."

Cleo rolled her eyes. "Fine." She scrubbed at her damp hair. "Just be careful with your powers, okay?"

"Yes, Mum," Kim tied her shoes with little jerks. "Is it just the fact that you're older than me, or do I just have a face that everyone loves to boss around?"

Cleo threw down the towel. "You're going to make me say it, aren't you? I want you to be careful because I don't want anything bad to happen to you. That time you almost drowned was the worst moment of my life, and I never want to see you hurt like that ever again. Happy?"

Kim glanced at her. Cleo looked serious.

"Okay," Kim mumbled, feeling suddenly self-conscious. "Thanks."

"No problem." Cleo sounded calmer, and a bit embarrassed herself. Getting up, Kim walked out, hearing Cleo turn back into a human as she shut the door. Then she remembered something and looked back in. "When do I get a matching necklace?"

"What?" Cleo stood.

"You and Rikki and Emma all have cool necklaces, when do I get one?"

With an exasperated growl, Cleo threw the wet blanket at Kim, who pulled the door shut just just in time.

oYo

Yep, I'm done. I know, the fourth wall breakage subplot has not been resolved, but the focus of this story is Kim's desire to uncover the mermaid secret, and she has now accomplished that and everything that accompanied it, therefore this story is over. I may explore that subplot in another story, one that gives me more freedom with things like POV.

Thank you to Flaming Man of Iron, MagicMaker494, YugiohObsessed, The Chortling Mermaid, Sapphire Della Robbia, Rye Lee, H2o freak, charlotte bird, Star Light, Marril96, Jubjubbird7, Juliet Knighly, meapzilla2mouse, BlazingLegend, Fan, mochimochimochi32, dirkgiles, Calyn, TheObsessedFanboy, RikkoTheClown, DihydrogenMonoxide300, kaleigha, soonotsayin, Zikki 3, shamrock17, lacrosse13, Blanckary, BlueGhoul, Fanfic1Fan, JediKendalina, Kittyreanne, Mel-0, PhantomJay, PsychoMonkeyWithAChainsaw, Sketchergal, SmileLikeYouMeanIt123, waterlily2002, h2ojustaddwaterfan, hwoodheighterforever, megangirlheart13, melanshi, peppergirl203, Morphixgirl, Sakura-Chan10594, writer girl 25, km515, and all the other anonymous readers for helping turn this story into...this thing through your reviews, favorites, alerts and reading.


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